Zorpox: Stratagem
by ZorpoxTheConqueror
Summary: The return of the world's most dangerous villain could spell disaster, unless a certain red haired cheerleader can stop him. But can Kim stop Zorpox...when she doesn't even know he's back? CH21: Shego and Kim vs Zorpox.  Complete.
1. Chef Boy

_**A/N **I'll try and keep things brief here, so you can get to the story. I'll have some more notes afterwards._

_First, thanks to Eddy13 for beta checking this chapter, and all the ones that follow; I tried to keep him busy._

_Despite all the stories surrounding Zorpox, as a villain, he wasn't any more success than anyone else; in fact, Drakken probably came closer to taking over the world in 'So the Drama'._ _Despite all this, I still have a fascination with him, and it probably all goes back to the quote below. This quote is basically the theme of the story._**  
**

* * *

_Hego: What happened to him?_

_Shego: I think he's evil now._

_Hego: Oh. How bad could that be?_

_Shego: You'd be...surprised._

_(Stop Team Go)_

* * *

**Chapter 1: Chef Boy**

_(Tuesday Evening)_

In a huge fortress, on some forgotten island in the Caribbean, a blue man was mumbling to himself. That man was Dr. Drakken, the evil mastermind behind countless plots to take over the world. With the help of his henchmen, he'd just finished cleaning his lair from his last plan-the destruction of his newest super weapon had cause a catastrophic feedback loop that had destroyed most of the lab. Now he was trying to devise another brilliant plan-hopefully a plan without one of his normally tiny flaws that escalate into a terrible disaster.

"Mind control...no I just got a bunch of old people. And...Shego is that the mail?"

Shego had just walked in carrying a bunch of letters and a couple of magazines. She tossed the letters to Dr. Drakken and started flipping through the magazines looking for anything interesting. _Oooh, Villain Digest; let's see, any good articles? _Shego sat down and started reading, tossing the rest of the magazines near Drakken.

Dr Drakken started grabbing letters from the pile. "Bills, bills, bills, Shego these are all bills; isn't there anything else here?"

Shego grabbed one letter and looked at it tiredly, then tossed it away. "Some are much worse than bills, Dr D; that one's from your mom."

"Mother?" Dr Drakken asked. He reached out and grabbed the letter, opened it, and read it. After he finished, he agreed with Shego. He crumpled the letter and tossed it toward the fireplace. Shego reacted quickly and grabbed it before it fell in. She opened the letter and started to read out loud before Drakken could try to get it back.

"'Dear Drewbie,'" Shego snickered and kept reading, "'I just wanted to ask how your radio station was doing, are you helping lots of people?'" Shego couldn't believe that this woman could be so dense sometimes. Of course, that's probably where Drakken got his obliviousness from_._

"Shego, give it back."

"And what about that nice lady wearing the green clothes, have you been doing any dating?" The villainess almost felt like gagging. _Date? Him? I'd rather be fed to sharks...on second thought, I'd rather feed __him__ to sharks._

"Shego, this isn't funny."

Shego continued. "'It's because you're so thin, you haven't been eating right since you started living on your own. I told you that you weren't ready.'" She eyes the doctor critically, wondering just how long he had been living without his mother. A slow smile spread on her face.

Drakken turned away, embarrassed.

"I think that you need to get in another line of work, because I never hear of anything you do, you don't seem to be getting any recognition." Shego grinned to herself-Drakken's mom must not watch the news much.

Her employer just glared angrily at her.

"Call me sometime, you always seem to be so busy." The letter finished with 'Love, Mom.'

During the entire reading of the letter, Drakken had been trying to snatch it from Shego. Now she let him have it, and smirked as he quickly threw it into the fire.

"So, Drewbie" Shego said sarcastically, "What's your next big plan?"

Drakken pouted. "After that, I'm not going to tell you."

"You don't have a plan, do you." It wasn't a question.

"Grrr, Shego, I'm the evil genius, you're the sidekick. You let me come up with the plans." Drakken tried to look like he had a brilliant plan. Shego just looked unconvinced.

"Fine, I don't have a plan, alright!" Drakken threw his hands in the air. "Do you have a plan?"

"Hey, I'm 'just the sidekick.' You don't pay me enough to come up with plans." Shego went back to reading.

Dr Drakken knew she wasn't going to say anything more on the subject, so he went back to the mail. He picked up a magazine on Super Weapons and Evil Inventions and started to flip through it. Maybe he could use some of the ideas in the magazine to get his mind working on another evil plan. He started calling out things to see what Shego thought.

"Cloning?"

"Never, ever."

"Doomsday Decimator?"

"Kimmie blew up your space station before you could use it."

"Drakk Force One?"

"That one was so bad, the buffoon beat you."

"Laser Drill?"

"The cheese in the building clogged up the cannon."

"Hmmm, Mega Weather Generator-I never did one of those, but it sounds familiar." Drakken tried to remember; so many of his plans had backfired that all of these inventions were starting to blend together.

"That was the one that 'Zorpox' made, remember? Kimmie stopped it just like everything else."

"Wait, Shego, wait. Maybe instead of an invention, I need some outside help." Drakken grinned, realizing he had an idea.

"Outside help? Yeah, last time that happened you ended up owing Duff Killigan a private island." Shego smirked at that memory.

Drakken tried to defend himself. "Killigan put that part of the contract in under my nose and worded it strangely."

"It said 'I, Drakken, will give Killigan an island for services rendered, whether or not I take over the world.'"

"There was a smudge on the paper-I thought it said 'will not give.' At least it didn't specify how big the island had to be." Now Drakken smiled. Killigan had been less than pleased with his island in a snow globe.

"No, Shego, not Killigan. I think I need someone smarter, someone who has come much closer to winning against Kim Possible; I need...Zorpox." Drakken waited for Shego's sarcastic comment.

Instead, she paled. "Drakken, no. Not Zorpox, he's insane-there's no way you can control him."

"You just let me figure that out, Shego."

X X X X

Kim and Ron walked into Bueno Nacho later that evening, tired and hungry after stopping Drakken's latest plan. They walked to the counter, surprised to see Ned so late at night. Ron frowned. "Ned, what are you doing here? Didn't your shift end almost three hours ago?"

The assistant manager shook his head. "No, I'm on the night shift now. Management thought it would be a good idea for me to be familiar with the night crowd as well."

"Right..." Ron nodded, his memories of working at the restaurant coming back. "Okay, I'll have five Caseritos, and Kim'll have..."

"A salad." She cut him off, smirking.

Ron turned to her, incredulous. "A salad? What makes you think they even sell salads this late at night?"

"Um, actually Ron, we do...but we're out of Caseritos." Ned spoke hesitantly.

"What! No Caseritos? KP," he whined, "I was all ready for Caseritos." He turned back to Ned. The assistant manager held his hands up.

"I'm sorry Ron, I haven't got the supplies in from Smarty Mart yet-" Unknown to most people, Bueno Nacho actually got its supplies from the giant market chain. Since Smarty Marts were located all over the world, and shipped their supplies constantly, the management at Bueno Nacho had struck a deal with them to supply the restaurants, for a small fee. "I do have some Nacos, though."

Ron frowned. He only had four dollars on him, and with the price of Kim's salad, he'd only have enough for two Nacos. It was his turn to buy the food, and he'd spent half of his money this morning stocking up on edible food at the vending machine-the lunch lady had been serving some sort of mystery glop from the great beyond. He looked at Ned sadly.

"Oh, I almost forgot to tell you-I was talking with management, and mentioned that we get more people coming in on Tuesdays, and they liked my idea to move Naco Night-from now on, Tuesday nights are Naco Nights-all Nacos are half off."

Ron's eyes got wide. "Ha-half off?" He nearly choked as he started drooling. Four! He could get four Nacos! "Ned, you are the man! Four Nacos, and one salad." He turned. "What kind of salad, KP?"

She frowned. "The Tortata's fine."

They waited as Ned got their food, then went and sat at their booth. Ron ate his first Naco quickly, then slowly started on the second one. He looked at Kim. "I can't believe you got a salad-there's a Naco here for you, if you want it."

She shook her head. "I'll pass." The red head watched as he ate the cheesy mess. "I still don't see why you like those so much."

"C'mon, KP, how can you say no to all this cheesy goodness?" Ron held it up to her. "The Naco is the pinnacle of fast food eatery-cheese and sauce, spice and crunchiness, it all blends together to create the perfect food."

Kim put her hands up. "I'm not saying I don't like the Naco, but when was the last time you had something other than a Naco or Caserito to eat?"

He frowned. "Does Christmas count?"

She just sighed.

X X X X

_(Wednesday Morning)_

Of course, by the next morning, Ron hadn't dropped the subject. After meeting Kim outside her house, he started right where he left off. "Come on, KP, salads are for rabbit things-not people. I mean, it's not like people even associate with salads; no one ever named a salad after someone famous."

Kim stared at him. "I don't suppose you've heard of the Caesar Salad before."

Ron frowned. "Caesar Salad? Who's Caesar, is he that guy in Latin class?"

She rolled her eyes. "Never mind. Look, you like to cook, what's wrong with salads?"

"KP," he explained, "You don't 'cook' a salad-they just kinda grow in the bowl. Besides, what kinda name is 'Tortata' anyway?"

Now she was curious. "It _is_ sort of strange. I mean, what does 'tortata' mean?"

"'Leafy lunch.'" Ron said absentmindedly-then his eyes got really wide. "No-no, I didn't just say that." He closed his eyes and hit himself in the head. "I knew I shouldn't have let mom make me take those cooking classes."

"When did you take cooking lessons?"

Ron shrugged. "Last summer, after taking home Ec. She always knew I was a good cook, but after that she thought I should take some _formal classes._" He said the last part in disgust. "KP, they wouldn't let me work with cheese!"

Kim stifled a laugh. "They wouldn't let you work with cheese at all?"

Now Ron looked at his feet. "Well, no, they just didn't want me to use cheese on everything." He made eye contact. "Kim, you don't know how awful it is to have something as simple as a potato with no cheese."

"Okay..." By this point they had reached the school. They entered the building. "I just-"

"Stoppable, we need to talk." Steve Barkin walked up behind the startled teens. Ron spun and hid behind Kim.

"Come on, Mr B, I told you I was sorry about the look-" Ron peeked over Kim's shoulder.

"No, Stoppable, I just got a letter in the mail for you." He held up an official looking letter. "You've been invited to the annual Cooking and Creation Expo."

Kim frowned. "What's that?"

Barkin held the letter up and read off of it. "'This letter is asking for a single student of high-caliber cooking skills to join in a week of learning about the new culinary advances of the last year. ' Stoppable, you're the best cook this school has seen, so you're going." He gave Ron the letter. "Pack up, soldier."

"But the letter says I don't leave until tomorrow night!" Ron's eyes had gone wide.

"Roger that, Stoppable, but you need your homework. Come with me." He placed his hands on the teen's shoulders and led him off. Ron managed to shoot Kim a look of fear and pleading. She stepped in.

"Um, Mr Barkin?" The Vice Principle half turned. "Can't Ron get his work later-I mean school starts in five minutes-you don't want him to miss first period English, right?"

"All right, Possible, good point." He looked back down at the teen in his grasp. "I'll see you seventh period study hall, Stoppable-my office-don't be late." With that, he released Ron and walked off.

The blond went over to Kim and grabbed her hand. "Thank you-you just saved my life."

She rolled her eyes. "Exaggerate much?"

"You have no idea what it's like. Remember when I went to Yamunuchi? One week of homework, not too bad. The accompanying week of classes compressed into a Barkin super lecture-" He shuddered. "Indescribable." Now he shook his head. "I'd have a better time with Shego. I'm not going KP."

"Just because Barkin's giving you homework?"

"Yes." She gave him a look. "No." He amended. "KP, I don't know, I don't like going on these things-I mean, it messes with my essential Ronness-Yamanuchi...Ninjas. Wannaweep...mutant fish things. You know, Kim, I used to like the woods, trees, nature...that was before the dark times...before Gill. And the Ninjas-don't get me started-how do you think I felt knowing that Rufus makes a better Ninja than I do? It vexes me so."

"Come on, Ron, this is cooking, you like cooking, remember? Creating pastries, pies, the naco-using long fork thingies and..." She coughed "...the blender. Look, no ninjas, mutant fish, monkeys or any other evil thing in sight. It'll be good for you."

"I-I don't know, KP, I'll think about it." Ron handed the pamphlet over to her, then followed her to their English class.

Kim spent the next few periods coming up with all sorts of arguments in favor of going, but couldn't convince Ron. Lunch came, and Kim sat staring at the letter. She just couldn't get him to understand that this would be good for him. She was gazing off into space when Monique came and sat next to her.

"You know, girl, you let your mind wander too far, and it won't come back."

Kim jerked up straight, then looked over at her friend. "Sorry, Monique, I'm just trying to figure out how to get Ron to go on this trip." She passed the letter over, hoping her friend might have some ideas. Monique picked it up and looked it over.

"Sounds pretty good, why doesn't he want to go?"

Kim rolled her eyes. "Something about Ninjas and mutant fish."

Monique decided to let that one pass. "So, where is chef boy, anyway?"

The red head waved her hand toward the front of the cafeteria. "Where else, arguing with the cafeteria lady again. He's really got to let it go, I know he's hundred of times better than her, but I swear that every time he does this, the food gets worse." She poked the food on her plate. "It's too bad Ron doesn't still have his home ec restaurant."

"That's it-that's it!" Monique laughed gleefully. Kim looked over, wondering if she'd lost it. About this time, Ron came back over.

"What's it?" Ron looked at both of them. "And why do I get the feeling this is about me?"

Monique held up the brochure. "Ron, you have _got_ to take these classes."

He frowned. "Not you, too. Aww, man, can't a guy get a break?" He poked a finger at Monique. "See if I bake you anymore pies."

She glared back. "Don't threaten me, boy, or I'll never take you to another GWA match again." His eyes widened in horror. "Yeah, that's what I thought. Listen, did either of you read the fine print at the bottom?" They both shook their heads. "It says here that someone who visits these classes will be instantly certified to be a cafeteria cook, among other things."

"No way!" Kim snatched the letter out her hands, only to have Ron steal it from her. He glanced at it, then looked up, his eyes wide.

"This means I could cook for the school again! I can finally make food that actually has taste!"

Monique nodded. "Ron, think about all of these poor people forced to eat this disgusting glop. You can change that Ron Stoppable, it is your duty!"

"Yeah...yeah! I'll do it-I'll go to this cooking thing and save the school. I'll be a hero." He got up, then went over to the cafeteria lady to give her a piece of his mind-again.

Kim looked at her friend, eyebrows raised. Monique just looked back smugly. "You can do anything-me? I can convince anyone to _do_ anything."

X X X X

With Ron finally convinced, the rest of the day want surprisingly well.

That was good-because the events after school were going to be...interesting.

X X X X

Dr Samuel Ian, or Sim as he was called by his friends, was not happy. He'd been happy earlier in the day, because he had just gotten a grant from the Middleton Museum for his newest expedition. He'd gone in front of the group of chairmen, laid out his case, and they'd seemed really excited. Dr Ian had found some references to an ape temple in the middle of a desert, a strange location for simian artifacts, and he wanted to check it out. Now with his funding, he'd be able to explore and hopefully find it.

That is, if he got out of his current situation.

After he had finished the presentation, the chairmen had indicated their support. Dr Ian had stood up to shake their hands, but was surprised when there was an explosion behind him. He turned, seeing a funny looking, bent over figure surrounded by a number of small monkeys dressed in black. As the smoke cleared, he recognized who was standing there. "Lord Monty Fiske? I heard you had disappeared. What happened to you, man?"

The monkey man walked forward, until he stood in front of the doctor. "It's Monkey Fist now, Dr Ian, and I'm here for my revenge."

Sim frowned. "Revenge? What did I ever do you?"

Monkey Fist stood right in front of him. "I am the premier archaeologist of monkey artifacts, not you. I should have been told about this simian temple first-but you got the call. You were always second best, doctor, and now you'll be dead, last, unless you tell me where to find this temple."

Sim shook his head. "I won't tell you where the temple is, but I would be willing to share the credit with yo-" He abruptly cut off as the monkey man grabbed him and lifted him off his feet.

"I'm not amused, doctor."

"Hey! Set him down, Monkey boy!" Ron stood slightly behind Kim, glaring at Monkey Fist.

"Wonderful, the buffoon and cheerleader." The monkey man turned, but didn't release the archaeologist. "Monkey Ninjas-attack!"

Five monkey ninjas immediately rushed toward Kim, ready to take her down. She waited until they were close, then flipped forward over them, moving toward Monkey Fist. A sixth ninja tried to get Ron, but he ran off, screaming. Kim managed to get near her target, and after a quick strike, caused him to loose his grip on Dr Ian. The archaeologist moved off, leaving Kim facing Monkey Fist.

He tried to attack her, but she back flipped away, then moved forward and kicked out, knocking him off his feet. Kim got ready to attack again, but realized the monkey ninjas were ready to attack. She spun and dropped to one knee, and punched out, then rolled and grabbed a tail. She stood and spun the monkey into its friend, and they quickly got tangled up. She turned, ready to attack Monkey Fist, but realized that problem had already been taken care of.

After the ninja had tried to attack Ron, he'd gone running off, waving his arms and screaming. Somehow, he'd knocked over a vase, which had set off the security system. Monkey Fist just happened to be standing near one of the exhibits, and when a steel cage fell from the ceiling, he was caught inside. He ran to edge, grabbed the bars, and tried to rock the cage. It wouldn't budge. He glared at Ron. The sidekick just grinned back.

"Monkey want a banana?" He made a peeling motion at the villain, and Monkey Fist tried to grab him through the bars. Ron jumped back and turned to Kim. "You know, KP, I think we need a sign that says not to feed the animals; they might bite."

"Ron..." Kim started, then broke off as the archaeologist walked forward.

"Are you Kim Possible?" She nodded. "Pleased to meet you, I'm Sim Ian-um, Doctor Samuel Ian at your service. And...this is?" He looked over at her sidekick.

"Ron Stoppable." He introduced himself. "Good to meet you, too." Ron shook the man's hand, then, keeping a tight grip, pulled his arm back and rolled up the archaeologist's sleeve, looking for fur. Dr Ian yanked his arm away and gave Kim a questioning look.

She leaned in closely. "He's afraid of monkeys."

"Ah." The archaeologist nodded. "I once had a guide that way...sadly, he is no longer with us."

Ron's eyes widened. "The monkeys killed him?"

"No, he ran off in a panic when a monkey jumped on him...I haven't seen him since." Sim shrugged. "Anyway, thank you for your help, Ms Possible..." he looked over at Ron. "...and you too, Mr...Stoppable. If you ever have need of my services, as an archaeologist, or even as a guide, don't hesitate to ask."

"It was no big, Mr Ian, just glad to help." She turned. "C'mon, Ron, lets get home. You may not have any homework due for a week, but _I've_ still got some." She waved, and they turned and left.

X X X X

After they left, they went back to Kim's house, and ate a quick supper. From there, Kim went upstairs to work on her schoolwork, while Ron sat on the couch, one eye on the TV, the other watching the tweebs carefully. Just because it looked like they were watching TV didn't mean they were-he'd learned that the hard way-the twins had been testing a new back light for their TV, and accidentally cranked it up to full. Ron had seen nothing but white for almost an hour.

As it was, he didn't really feel completely safe until Kim had come downstairs nearly forty minutes later. She'd shooed the tweebs off, then sat next to Ron, while they waited for their show to start. As soon as Agony County began, Kim finally relaxed, and leaned up against Ron. He shifted, to get comfortable-he really didn't mind if she leaned against him, but sometimes his arm went to sleep before the show ended and Kim had made it quite clear how she felt when he fidgeted.

After the show, Ron decided to head home, since he still had to pack for his trip the next day. When he got there, he was surprised to see all the lights out. He thought his parents would have been home. Then he remembered that they were at a banquet, something about his father's friend being given an award-actuary of the year or something. He shrugged, and used his key to open the door. He edged across the black room, feeling for the lamp before he finally found it.

With the room finally lit up, he looked around, then wandered into the kitchen. There, he found a note just saying that his parents would be back at around ten-thirty. Ron considered playing a game, but after being chased around by those monkeys, decided he'd rather just go to bed. He went up to his room, then got out some of his clothes and things he needed for his trip. He packed them away, and figure he could finish up tomorrow after school; from there, he got ready for bed, and ten minutes later was blissfully asleep.

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_**A/N** Ha, if you were expecting the villains to be waiting for Ron, you were wrong. Anyway, on to the notes._

_As I've said in my profile, I like mysteries, and the way 'So the Drama' was written so that you could figure out the plot if you really thought about it. I'm going for the same thing here, with this story, so feel free to speculate and guess what you think is going to happen. We'll see if you're right or not. And there might already be one key fact in this chapter._

_When it's finished, this story will be the longest that I've posted; over three times the length of my next longest story. I've been working on it for a few years, to get all the plot details and things that I wanted in it. Most people describe Zorpox as a brilliant villain, but I really wanted to expand on that, with a complex plot, and a number of little twists and turns. Like I said at the beginning, on TV, we never really saw anything that made Zorpox seem that smart or dangerous. This story will fill in the blanks.  
_

_And for those looking for the appearance of Zorpox, you won't have to wait too long.  
_


	2. Be careful what you wish for

**_A/N _**_First, I guess I should mention-since I forgot in the first chapter-this story takes place after the episodes in Season 3, but before So the Drama. Secondly, this chapter makes a reference to another one of my stories, 'When She Falls' but you don't have to read that story to understand anything going on here. Oh, and take note of the chapter title.  
_

_And, as always, thanks to Eddy13 for beta reading and making my story more presentable._

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**Chapter 2: Be careful what you wish for...**

_(Thursday Morning)_

The next morning Ron woke up earlier than usual, so by the time he was dressed and ready, he still had about twenty minutes before he would normally leave to meet Kim. He headed downstairs, to see what his mom had made for breakfast. He came down to the smell of eggs and bacon. The teen sat down and started to eat, and realized both of his parents were giving him a funny look. He stared back. Finally his mom opened her mouth.

"Um, Ronnie, I don't know how to ask this, but are you going somewhere? I checked on you last night, and couldn't help but notice you had your luggage out. Do you have some sort of trip with Kim?" She didn't really mind, but she was curious.

"No, mom, actually, I got invited to this cooking expo, and since I like to cook, I thought I'd go."

His dad smiled. "Well, that's good, son, but why didn't you tell us?"

Ron shrugged. "I guess this is my way of telling you-it was kinda sudden, and I wasn't really that sure I wanted to go. I'll be leaving tonight, if that's okay..."

"Of course it's okay, Ronnie." His mother sat across from him. "Do you need to go to the airport?" He nodded. "We'll take you tonight."

"One problem though, son." Ron turned to his father. "We were planning on taking a short trip to Norway so your mom could talk with her boss-and we can't take Rufus with us...and I don't think you should take him with you like you did last summer."

Ron grimaced. As bad as he hated that he couldn't work with cheese, Rufus had hated it much worse. He'd ended up sneaking into the back refrigerator while Ron was having his class. It had taken him most of a month to pay them back for the cheese the little mole rat had eaten. He nodded. "You're probably right-but I bet Kim will look after him for me."

His parents agreed, and after that they just discussed cooking in general. Soon enough it came time for Ron to leave and meet Kim, so he went back upstairs to grab Rufus from his bed, then set out. He had just reached Kim's door when she came out and grabbed his hand, pulling him along toward school. He was confused. "Kim, why are we in a rush?"

"Because we have to get to school-like now." She didn't explain further, so Ron just followed obediently. When they reached the school, nothing seemed out of the ordinary, but he knew looks could be deceiving. He cautiously looked around. Nothing happened.

"So, Kim-what's the sitch?" He smirked. She turned and glared at him. She opened her mouth to say something, then just shook her head. "What? Kim?"

"Did you forget?" He frowned. "Come on, Ron, we've got those presentations in English."

Ron's eyes lit up as he remembered. Last week they had been called on a mission just before he and Kim had presented their living history reports. The report referred to the life of someone in their family that had done something noteworthy or important, and the living part of living history meant you had to dress up and act out something in their life. For once Ron had been particularly interested in this project, as he'd come across a great-great uncle who was an archaeologist-and he'd been pretty famous-he discovered the lost tomb of Owata Gooze Siam.

Kim hadn't gone quite as far back as Ron, instead opting to do the report on her own grandmother. She'd found quite a bit out about her grandmother, and the report had given her an excuse to fly down to Florida to visit her Nana again. Kim had spent a weekend down there, learning all sorts of things about her Nana's history, the things she'd done, and the people she'd saved. It wasn't a stretch to say that her grandmother was one of the most influential people in the world during her prime.

Both teens couldn't wait to begin their report-that was, until they got inside the English room.

"Take your seats, Possible, Stoppable, and let's get started." Mr. Barkin stood at the front of the class, then motioned that they should sit.

For once, Kim got the question out first. "Mr. Barkin, where's Mrs. French?"

Barkin grimaced. "Poor old woman-the strain finally got to her."

Ron frowned. "The strain of teaching? Come on, Mr. B, we're not that bad."

Their new English teacher gave him a dark look. "You, Stoppable, would drive a hundred sane teachers to a looney bin." He shook his head. "No, I mean the strain of opening the coffee jar in the teachers lounge-she pulled a muscle in both of her arms and legs." He glared as Ron opened his mouth. "Don't ask."

Ron's mouth closed with an audible click. He shook his head to clear it. "So, can I present first?"

"Present? Stoppable, if this is another one of your punk slang songs..."

"No, Mr. B, It's a living history report on our ancestors. Kim and I got called out before we presented and need to go."

"Fine." Barkin said, then snatched Ron as he tried to run to the front of the class. "Hooold up, there. Possible will go first."

Kim stood up, then walked to the front of the classroom. She told about many of the things her Nana had done, from her underwater Navy demolition training, to training with the Shaolin monks, even her aviation work and more. Kim concentrated more on the adventurous things that her grandmother had done, tying it in with the missions that she had done herself.

Eventually, Kim began speaking more on the things her Nana had done later in life. When she began speaking about her Nana's great cooking skill and her Lemon Squares recipe, Bonnie began fidgeting and mumbling something. Barkin quickly picked up on it.

"Rockwaller. You got a problem with Possible's report?"

Bonnie gave an evil smirk. "Not really, Mr. Barkin, just thinking about how funny it is-you know, that Kim takes after her grandmother in so many ways, but it looks like the cooking gene skipped her generation-she couldn't cook to save her life."

Kim's eyes narrowed, and she opened her mouth to retort, but Barkin had already beaten her to it. "Miss Rockwaller, keep those observations to yourself-this is a history presentation, not a discussion board. You're here to listen and learn-got it?"

She nodded, but still smiled slightly, knowing she had gotten her rival good. Kim just glared back, continuing with her report. She went on to tell about how her grandmother had learned to fly, using that skill in many of the things that she had done. Finally Kim did a reenactment of a flight her Nana made around the world, taking the info directly from a diary her grandmother had made while in flight.

After she finished and sat, Barkin motioned to Ron, and the teen moved to the front of the room. He was dressed in a light brown leather jacket, with a matching leather hat. He turned and faced the class.

"My great uncle, Jacob Dean Stoppable, was an archaeologist, and traveled around the world, finding all sorts of lost artifacts and ancient tombs. From a young age he was interested in the past, and by the time he graduated college, he had already discovered many things-but his greatest discovery came less than a year after he had gotten his degree. You see, my uncle discovered the tomb of the great lost king Owata Gooze Siam."

Ron dipped his head slightly, and when he had looked up, his entire demeanor had changed. It was a startling difference, even for Kim, who had seen his presentation before.

"'Batten down the hatches men! The water will be even rougher from here on in!' It was with these words that we began our journey down the Amazon River. Our three boats traveled down that accursed river for nearly three days before an accident left us stranded high and dry. No transportation, little food and water, it would take us nearly a month of travel through the thick underbrush before we would ever reach any semblance of civilization.'"

"'Fortunately no one was injured, and all twelve men managed to make it to the shore. We immediately took account of what we had on hand, then set out northward, back toward the town at the mouth of the river. We spent days crawling through the muck infested jungle of South America, days and night that still haunt me now. We had been stranded in one of the more dangerous and undiscovered parts of the jungle, so it was very slow going. By day we had to worry about insects and other problems, but night was the real danger-when the predators came out. Out of the original twelve explorers, only five of us made it out of that death trap.'"

By now, everyone was listening with rapt attention; Mr. Barkin was sitting on the edge of his desk, Kim was focused on him, even Bonnie was leaning forward, captured by the tale. Ron continued.

"'We lost two men to panthers, late in the night-it wasn't even until the next morning that we realized they were gone. We made a search of the surrounding area, but could find nothing more than a few scraps of cloth and some black fur. From then on we slept in shifts with half of us watching the perimeter. It kept the animals at bay-but not the bugs.'"

"'When the first man became sick, we all knew what it was, but wouldn't face the truth-malaria. Despite our best efforts, he died a few days later. From there, the disease took hold, claiming three more victims and inflicting others with the illness-even I, myself was not immune, receiving a lesser strain of the disease. Still, we pressed onward, even as our spirits sank.'"

Ron then leaned forward and raised his hand, as if holding an imaginary sword. He struck repeatedly. "'We carved our way through that jungle for weeks, until our blades had become dull, our clothes tatters, out shoes nothing more than water logged wool. But I wouldn't let us give up-we pressed onward, upward, until we eventually came upon a startling discovery-an unknown pyramid, located just less than a weeks travel from our destination. It was none other than the lost tomb of the Aztec King Owata Gooze Siam...of course, I didn't know that at the time.'"

Ron paused, then his voice lowered, becoming barely a whispered. "'We stared in awe at the temple, surprised that such a large man-made creation could have been undiscovered for so very long. This discovery dwarfed any I could have hoped to find-and I had come across it by accident. We camped at the base of the main steps, and spent three days exploring inside and out. Unfortunately, we lost two more explorers who set off a trap in one of the lower sections of the tomb.'"

We finally made it back to the city, the five of us. Two guides, one worker, a half dead archaeologist, and my old friend Marcus Ian. We quickly left that place and returned to Middleton, where we met with the director of the Museum and told him all about our find. He was hesitant at first, but I was able to convince the gruff Henry Barkin to fund our trip, and we returned, bringing back one of the greatest finds of our century.'" As Ron finished, he dropped his head to signal the end of the story.

He looked up again. "That was the greatest find my uncle ever made. He made a number of other small discoveries, but spent the rest of his life trying to top that first historic find." Now Ron frowned. "Actually, the last entry in my uncle's diary seems to indicate that he was in search of an even greater treasure, but something happened-it isn't specific. Three pages are missing, and the last entry just says that the 'treasure is too dangerous for anyone.'" He shrugged. "My uncle died at the age of 35, while searching in the jungles of Africa for some lost artifact." He held the small journal up. "This is all that's left of my great uncle; they were never able to even recover his body."

For once, Barkin actually smiled. "Very nice presentation, Stoppable, A plus." He turned back to the class, his gruff manner coming back to the forefront. "Alright, people, open your books to-" the bell rang, signaling the end of class. The teacher looked up in surprise. He stepped in front of the door so no one could leave. "Fine, then. Class, read the first ten chapters of the story Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by the beginning of next week. We'll be working on other things until then. Dismissed." As soon as the vice principle stepped out of the way, everyone flooded out of the classroom.

"Wow." Kim stepped up beside Ron, looking at him in his costume. "That was good, Ron, really good."

"You think so?" Now that Ron was no longer in character, his normal lack of confidence had again set in. "I kinda thought I might be overdoing it."

Kim shook her head. "No, It was perfect-I mean, everyone was so into it-I think Barkin was having flashbacks to his time in the military-and Bonnie-you probably missed it, but she almost fell out of her seat...twice. Ron, you're presentation was amazing."

"Really?" Kim nodded, and he finally seemed to relax. "Well, yours was great too, KP-especial when you did that Kung Fu kick and stopped it beside Bonnie's head. I thought for sure she was going to faint."

"She did go kinda white." Kim smirked.

Ron felt something move in his pocket, and remembered Rufus-he still had to ask Kim about watching the little mole rat. He looked at her. "Um, KP, could you-"

"Ms Possible?" A teacher walked up to the two teens and got Kim's attention. "Kim, I need you to go over this info for the yearbook..." Kim quickly matched steps with her, then sent Ron an apologetic look. She followed the teacher, and Ron watched their receding backs until they left the hall. He frowned, but then shrugged. Oh well-that's what you get when your best friend is the most important person in the school. He headed to class-he's just have to talk to her later.

Kim came in just under the bell, so he had no chance to ask about Rufus; the same for their next couple of periods. He finally had a chance to talk to her in their class before lunch: chemistry-but they spent most of the time working with chemicals back in the lab. They were testing the dissolution rate of certain substances, so they had a number of different chemicals and substances to test. Things were going well until Ron reached for a container of normal table salt. His reached across the counter, but instead of grabbing the beaker, his finger tip touched it, pushing if off the edge. It slipped and fell off, spilling it's contents across the floor.

His red headed partner gave him a dirty look. He grinned back innocently, and she just shook her head, and went back to the experiment. He sighed, then went and got a broom and dustpan and cleaned up the mess. After putting the items up, he came back to their lab table, and glanced at the time. They only had a few minutes left of class.

Ron took a look at their lab paper, and realized that Kim had managed to finish testing everything except the substance he dropped. He quickly ran back to the storage room, and looked around for the salt. He finally spotted the containers, in the back corner, and grabbed one with it's label facing away from him. He didn't realize that instead of the harmless NaCl, he's accidentally grabbed pure Sodium.

He rushed back in, then without thinking about it, held the container of Sodium over the water in the beaker. Kim had turned her back, to ask the teacher a question, and was only now turning to look at what Ron was doing. Her eyes followed his arm, down to the container, before settling on the label. As Kim read it, she had a fraction of a second to realize that things were about to get very, very bright. With no way to stop him, she did the only thing she could: clamp her eyes closed and put her hands up.

Any element in the first column of the periodic table reacts with water-some with just a pretty flash, others with a little more substance-regardless, when you put those amounts of reactive substances together, danger is inevitable.

Kim was treated for minor burns on her hands and arms, while Ron's were a little more severe. He was given a soothing cream, then told to rub it on his arms every hour to keep the pain down. It was a special burn cream that would promote healing, and by the end of the day, he should have nothing more than a slight rash and a very red sunburn. Even still, he was released from school early.

X X X X

As Ron walked home, he grimaced. As soon as Kim had realized that he was okay, he'd gotten an earful-about being careful, watching what he was doing, safety, safety, safety. He was glad that no one else got hurt, but he really felt bad about the burns that Kim had gotten. Her arms were red, and she'd winced when they had put the burn cream on her. After he'd received his lecture, he'd apologized repeatedly, although Kim said it was no big.

He looked down at his arms. She was wrong-it _was_ big. He didn't like it when she got hurt, although it was inevitable considering the stuff they did. Usually it was just a scrape, maybe a little blood-the worse thing that had happened to either one of them was a broken arm-and that had been when they had been learning to ride horses together.

And then, just like now, it was his fault. Only instead of not stopping Kim from riding, this time he actively hurt her. He felt sick to his stomach, and very guilty. While Ron could be very disorganized in everything that he did, that didn't mean he was careless; he honestly was just very clumsy. Despite this, he usually managed to help Kim in some way or another on her mission-rarely did he every do something that got either one of them hurt. Ron knew that if it ever reached a point that he was a real hindrance to Kim, he'd stop going on missions with her.

Some days, he wondered why they even stayed friends. He knew that Kim could easily find someone, anyone better than him-but she stuck with him anyways. He knew that he could always count on her to help whenever he needed it-and he hoped she knew that he'd do the same. Ron would do anything she asked without hesitation...unless, of course, she demanded he change his haircut again-a man has to draw the line somewhere.

X X X X

Kim frowned in the middle of class, then had to force herself not to scratch her arms. The burn cream had quickly reduced the pain to a dull ache, but now her arms were itching fiercely. She'd already scratched her arm hoping to relieve the pressure; instead, her arm had started to burn where the cream had been wiped off. She decided she could live with the itching.

It was late in the afternoon, and Kim was in her last class of the day. She sat and doodled on her paper while Mr. Barkin droned on and on about something. She let her mind wander and contemplated the big mysteries of the universe. Was Barkin the only teacher at the high school? Why was Drakken blue? And the greatest mystery of them all-what was in that pouch on Shego's leg? She was actually working on the first one when Barkin called an end to class. Every one got up and started to leave, but the vice principle told Kim to stay for a moment.

When she heard she was staying after class, she freaked out. Had he caught her not paying attention? She walked up the ex-military man. "Mr. Barkin, I'm sorry, but I just had my mind on other things, because I've been so busy, I usually don't have time to just think and-"

"Possible, what are you talking about?" He held up a giant folder stuffed full of papers. "I want you to take this to Stoppable tonight so he can keep up with the homework." Kim gave a sheepish grin and grabbed the homework. "Make sure he knows that it's due as soon as he gets back." Kim nodded and beat a hasty retreat.

Outside she found Bonnie waiting for her. "Hi, K, get detention again? I heard Vinnie really misses you."

The other cheerleader growled. "You would know, B. Didn't you see him last week?" Bonnie glared back at Kim angrily, and the two teens faced off. Things looked like they were going to get heated, but fortunately Monique showed up to cool the two off.

"Kim, girl, come on, you have got to see this." Without a pause or even sending a glance Bonnie's way, Monique tugged Kim off and quickly around the corner. As soon as they were out of sight of Bonnie, she breathed a sight of relief, then turned to her red haired friend. "Kim, you need to quit letting her bait you. One of these days you're going to go all Kung Fu on her, and as much as I'd like to see that, you don't need the trouble."

Kim gave a wry smile. "Thanks. Sorry, I've just been having a bad day." She tipped her head down at her arms, still red and inflamed. "Bonnie was just the last straw."

Monique looked down at Kim's arms. She heard about the explosion in the science lab, but hadn't heard any of the details. Kim quickly filled her in. "That boy need to learn some common sense, quick."

The other teen nodded ruefully. "Ron can be such a klutz." Her mood darkened as she thought about him. "I mean, is it too much to ask for him to be careful once in a while? He's always goofing off, if he hadn't grabbed that Sodium instead of the salt, if he'd been paying more attention..." Kim shook her head. "I know that he can do better; I mean, if he'd just focus, think about it, he'd do so much better in school, on our missions...everywhere."

"You really think so?" Monique couldn't believe that.

"You haven't seen him like I have." She thought back to Wannaweep. "Sometimes...I don't know, it's like he's a different person. When we were at that camp, Ron had this drive, this resourcefulness, I'd never seen before. He was able to save all of us." She looked at Monique. "But any other time, when I really need the help...he's just such a goof up. Just once, I'd like to see what he could really do if he put his mind to something. I mean, is that too much to ask?"

She started to say something else, but instead heard a beeping from her backpack. She pulled out the Kimmunicator. "What's the sitch, Wade?"

"Bad news, Kim. Monkey Fist has escaped." Wade glared at his computer screen, then looked at Kim. "GJ showed up late for the pickup-his monkey ninjas attacked and set him free. He's gone into hiding again."

Kim rolled her eyes. The villain always escaped-after she went to all that work to catch them-it was like GJ didn't even care. She knew it wasn't Dr Director's fault-it was the bureaucrats that tied her up, prevented her people from doing their job. She put it all into perspective. "It's no big, Wade, he'll show up sometime. We'll catch him then."

Her techno friend nodded. "Right, just wanted to let you know. Oh, tell Ron to have a good trip-I tried getting him though his computer, but it's unplugged." His screen clicked off.

There was a pause as Kim's eyes widened. "Ron's leaving tonight-I almost forgot." She looked at her watch. "I really got to go, Monique." She turned and dashed off, looking over her shoulder. "Talk to you tomorrow." Monique grinned and waved.

X X X X

Right after she left, Kim had quickly rushed around the school, making sure her projects and tasks were together for school the next day, then quickly packed up her things and raced home. She dropped her stuff off, only staying long enough to tell her parents she was going to visit Ron-then she was off again. She finally stopped in front of his door, nearly out of breath after her frantic actions. She composed herself, then rang the doorbell. Mr. Stoppable answered.

"Kimberly, it's good to see you. Ron's upstairs packing." Kim nodded her thanks, then went right up. She started walking down the hall to his room when she heard him talking inside-probably to Rufus. Kim was just going to walk right in, until she heard him say her name. She paused outside his door, listening in.

"I don't know, Rufus, I mean Kim must think I'm useless-all I'm good for is blowing stuff up-Drakken's lair, the science lab, that cheese burrito in her microwave...have I ever helped her in anything?" He stopped packing to look at his little mole rat.

"Uh huh, uh huh." Rufus nodded his head twice. "Gill"

"Oh sure, Gill." Ron shuddered, but then flopped back on his bed. "Yeah, Kim and the other cheerleaders wouldn't have even been in that mess if it wasn't for me. That mutant was after me-and they got caught in things. I cause more trouble for Kim than anything. She must think I'm a goof up."

Kim felt a twinge of guilt at that. She _had _called him a goof up-but she hadn't really meant it, had she? She'd just been so upset with Bonnie, and what had happened in the science lab. She hadn't been thinking, had just blurted out what was on her mind. She realized that she need to apologize to Ron for being so hard on him. It had just been an accident, it wasn't really his fault-the containers had just been misplaced. She walked back down the hall a ways, then called out to him. "Ron, are you in there?"

"Kim?" There was a shuffling sound from inside, and when Kim came in, she saw Ron standing near his suitcase, staring hard into it. He just kept working at his packing, waiting. Finally he turned. "Kim, I'm sorry, I know it was a stupid think to do, I should have paid more attention, I didn't want you to get hurt." He grabbed a small bottle of liquid off his desk. "I got you some burn cream, if you need it." He grimaced, waiting for her to lay into him again.

Instead he was surprised when she brought him into a hug. "I'm sorry too." He gave her a confused look. "I shouldn't have yelled at you. It was an accident, it wasn't your fault-I shouldn't have exploded." She pulled away, then gave him a sincere smile. Ron gave a little half smile back, still unsure. She looked at the cream Ron had in his hands, then pointed at it. "Could you put some on?" She raised her arms.

He nodded, and finally smiled, then put some on his hands to spread down her arms. He applied it carefully, as Kim watched him move. She didn't find it odd that he was able to apply the cream smoothly, making sure not to rub her arms too hard. He made sure to get all her arm, coating the entire thing and missing nothing. He finished, then set the container on the table next to him. Kim quickly snatched it up. "Your turn."

Ron stuck his arms out, and Kim did the same to him, remembering all the times they'd gone to the pool, spreading the sunscreen. She wiped the cream up his arms, then around, but when she finished, she smirked mischievously. Kim put a small dollop on her finger, then wiped it on his nose. "I think you've got a burn here, too." She laughed as he wiggle his nose, trying to get the cold cream off. Finally he swiped it away with his hand.

He ended up smearing more on his face, and had to grab a washcloth to wipe it off. Kim's fun done, she went over to his suitcase and looked inside, checking that he was packing things that he actually needed-she remembered that on his trip to Yamanuchi, he'd packed more food than clothing. While Ron wasn't looking, she pulled out a couple of shirts and replaced them with nicer ones-he was going to a fancy expo, he needed some nicer looking clothes.

Ron walked back over with some other stuff to put in, then spotted Rufus standing on his dresser. He remembered that he still needed to check and see if Kim could watch the mole rat while he was gone. "Um, KP, I kinda got a favor to ask..." He shuffled his feet, then looked at her. "Kim, I know that last time I did this I gave you all sorts of rules, but can you take care of Rufus for the two weeks? My parents are going to be out of town next week, and they can't take Rufus with them. I'd take him with me, but I'm afraid he'd eat all the food."

"Hey!" Rufus squeaked from the dresser. He jumped out and ran up Ron's arm to his shoulder, so he could look him in the eye.

"Sorry, buddy." He looked at Kim again. "You know there's no one I trust more to watch him."

Kim had mixed feelings about watching him. She remembered the first time she had 'Rufus sat.' She had gone all over the globe to keep him safe from some of her major foes. Fortunately, Ron never learned about that incident.

On the other hand, Rufus was always fun to be around, and when he played with the tweebs, they generally left her alone. Plus, if she got called away on any emergency missions while Ron was gone, she would have backup-even if it was just Rufus. She nodded at Ron, and the mole rat on his shoulder nodded back.

Rufus gave Ron a hug, then ran down Ron's arm and jumped to Kim. He climbed up to her shoulder, and looked at Ron. Rufus watched as Ron closed his bags and grabbed them, ready to go.

Kim followed Ron downstairs, and waited as his parents got the car out to take him to the airport. Ron put his bags in the trunk, then climbed in the back with Kim. On the way to the airport, they talked about school things, such as tests, notes, and Bonnie's latest issues. In no time at all, they were at the airport. Ron said goodbye to his parents, and after receiving a hug from Kim, went to his plane. They waved goodbye, and watched as Ron's plane taxied and took off.

X X X X

Ron spent three hours on his flight before reaching his destination. It was the longest hours of his life. He was away from his family and Kim, he didn't really have anything to do, and the snackage on the plane consisted of a bag of peanuts half full of air. He spent nearly an hour on the flight raving about how there should be more food for a such a long flight, but no one listened to him so he settled down. Then to top it all off, he realized that he packed all of his essentials, but forgot to bring anything to do during his downtime.

He didn't even have his cell phone. He decided not to bring it after the time he went to France with his parents-he'd accidentally left his phone...somewhere. It had taken a lot of convincing to get his parents to buy him a replacement-he sure wasn't going to lose this one. Actually, unlike his first phone, he really like this one-it seemed to be sturdier-or at least he assumed it was after the twins had launched it in a rocket and it fell to the concrete-it had still worked. He was still suspicious that Wade might have made it for him.

He looked around, trying to see something to do. Suddenly an announcement came over the speakers. "Greeting, passengers. You are all in for a rare treat today. Our film, _Crash in the Alps,_ is free today. The story is all about a plane that crashes in the wilderness, and the victims have to do anything to survive. Please enjoy the film, and don't worry-our pilot has plenty of experience flying-today will mark his fifth landing!"

Ron's eyes widened in horror. He watched as the movie started, then put his head in his hands. "Don't wanna watch, don't wanna watch, don't wanna watch..." He mumbled that through the entire movie, the entire flight, and even as everybody left the aircraft. Finally an attendant had to escort him off the plane. It wasn't until he set foot on the ground that his mind snapped back in place.

After he got off the plane, he looked around for his ride. The culinary school had sent a representative to pick him up, so they should be here. The airport was bustling with hundreds of people getting on and off their flights. Ron walked around for over ten minutes before he finally spotted a sign with his name on it. The blond gave a sour face as he realized that, typically, his name was spelled wrong.

The man waiting for him waved and walked over, introduced himself, and told Ron that he had been sent with another representative to pick the teen up. He led the teen to his car and had him put his things in the trunk. The driver motioned that Ron should get in the back, then he got in the front. The blond got in and relaxed, looking over at the other passenger in the back. She was facing away, so Ron tried to get her attention.

"So, do they usually send out two people to bring in one person?"

She turned and grinned. "No, you're just special."

"Shego!"

* * *

_**A/N **Well, now things are getting a bit more serious, aren't they? I don't know about the rest of you, but I can't wait for the next chapter. Still have to wait until next week, though.**  
**_

_Oh, and in case you missed it, for my own amusement, I add two little things in this chapter I thought were funny. First was the English teacher named Mrs French. The second was the aztec king Owata Gooze Siam; if you don't see what's funny about it, say it out loud to your friends a couple of times, and I'm sure they'll help you figure it out._


	3. Zorpox's Return

_**A/N **Thanks to Eddy13 for Beta checking_**  
**

* * *

**Chapter 3: Zorpox's Return**

_(Friday Morning)_

The next morning, Kim woke up to a small weight on her stomach. Wondering if the tweebs were doing something to her, she opened her eyes a slit to see if they were in her room. She couldn't see anything, so she opened her eyes and looked down. Sometime during the night, Rufus had moved from his bed and curled up on her covers. Kim figured that the little guy was missing Ron and had moved looking for comfort.

She reached down and picked him up, then moved him to his bed. The movement caused him to wake up, and he peered at her sleepily. He did a double take when he realized that she wasn't Ron. Rufus squeaked at her and looked sad. She looked back at him and tried to cheer him up.

"Come on, Rufus, it's only two weeks, it'll go by quick. I'm sure Ron's having a good time right now."

Now she smiled. "You know, I'm sure my mom has set aside some food for you...including some cheese."

Rufus perked up. "Cheese!"

He scampered down onto the floor, and out into the hall. The tweebs were just coming out of their room, and Rufus had to dash around to miss their feet. He slid down the rail on the stairs, and sped into the kitchen.

As soon as Rufus was out of her room, Kim frowned. She agreed with Rufus-two weeks was going to be forever. She quickly got ready and headed downstairs. As she walked into the kitchen, she heard her brothers talking.

"...so then we take Rufus..."

"...put him into the chamber..."

"...and he gets transported across the room."

Kim stared at the twins. One of them had stuck Rufus inside a little glass chamber. He was staring at them and trying to scratch his way out. He looked totally freaked, and was more than a little angry.

"Now boys, no theoretical transportation in the kitchen; you remember what happened to the watermelon." Kim's father looked at the boys warily. They had tried to transport a watermelon across the room, only instead, it created a duplicate...then another, and another...they had eaten watermelons for days.

"Don't worry dad..."

"...we've used a phase director..."

"...to make sure he doesn't get copied."

Kim stepped in. "Tweebs! Rufus is not going to be part of your experiments." She reached out and pulled open the container. Rufus dashed up her shoulder and perched there, chittering down at the tweebs. He finally relaxed and curled around Kim's neck.

"Jim, Tim, remember that there is to be no testing on animals-especially ones that are friends of the family." Mr. Possible had a flashback of the gerbil and the microwave. He shuddered.

The rest of the morning went by without any problems, and Kim headed off to school. Unlike yesterday, without Ron, today just seemed to drag on forever. Her chemistry class was boring without Ron fearing he would blow up the lab (again). She had nobody to talk to between classes, except Rufus, and he wasn't very big on dialogue. Finally, there was no one there to argue with Mr. Barkin and keep his conversations interesting. By the time she reached lunch, she felt drained.

Fortunately, she'd just barely sat down when Monique showed up. Her friend brought her food over and set it down, then stared at the unappetizing mess. "I am going to be so glad when that boy shows up with his cooking certificate. Oh," She moaned, "I can already taste that pie he made last time." She finally looked at Kim. "So, how's your day going?"

"Awful." The teen looked ready to drop her head to the table. "I never realized how boring school is without Ron." Suddenly her eyes widened as she realized something. "Monique, what am I going to do tonight? Ron and I were going to go see a movie-now we can't." She looked across the table. "I don't suppose..."

Monique put her hands up. "As much as I'd love to, I've got some OT at Club Banana." She frowned. "Girl, you really need a hobby."

"A hobby? Like what? Saving the world is my hobby."

"No," Monique shook her head. "You need something you can do that's fun, that doesn't involve cheer leading, bad guys, or fighting. Maybe you could read a good book?"

Kim rolled her eyes. "Sure, Monique, I'll read a good long book-maybe _Lo The Plow Shall Till The Soil Of Redemption..._I heard that Ron really enjoyed it." She shook her head. "Have you ever seen me read a book that didn't come from the school? I don't have time for it."

Monique smirked. "Well, now you do. But fine, if you don't want to read a book, pick something else-um..." She frowned. "What other things do you like to do? Or is there something that you'd like to learn? Whatever it is, girl, just promise me that you won't take up cooking. You know, I didn't know it was possible to set off the fire alarm ten times in one period."

Kim made a face. "Yeah, yeah, everyone knows my cooking is terrible-it's not my fault. None of it makes any sense-it's not simple like disarming a bomb or something."

"Uh, huh, we definitely need to get you a hobby."

X X X X X X X X

Ron had been kept in a small cell most of the night and into the morning, and hadn't got much sleep. He kept expecting to get rescued by Kim, but it was only this morning that he had realized the truth-he was on his own. She didn't know he was in trouble, didn't even realize that Drakken and Shego were already onto a new plot. He faked sleep as the doors opened, but Shego was ready.

"I know you're awake, so don't try anything."

Instead of taking her advice, Ron jumped to his feet and charged her. She casually stepped to the side and kicked his feet out from under him. He landed painfully, but tried to get back up. Shego just laughed and stepped down on him, pushing him into the floor. She waited, then finally picked him up by his collar and lead him out of the room.

"Really stupid, Stoppable...but kinda fun to watch." She dragged him down the halls, before he finally got his feet under him and stood up. He was forced to walk just in front of the villainess, her clawed hand at his back. His curiosity got the better of him.

"How did you know to find me at the airport? Were you following me?" He tried to work up some courage. "Kim will know that I didn't get to the expo when they call to see why I haven't got there."

Shego laughed. "What makes you think there even is an expo? It was all a trap-from the start."

Ron stopped and stared at her, then kept moving as she pressed her sharpened gloves into him. He grimaced. "All a trap? How did you know I like to cook?"

The villain at his back growled. "How could I not-after you spent an hour telling me all about how you were tutoring Kim in home ec, cooking for the school, how you hated the lunch lady..." She shuddered, then grinned evilly. "Did you know that Drakken tried your food? He was in Middleton with his mother, and they ate at your school. He said your muffins were 'exquisite.'"

"Really?" Ron grinned at the praise-then looked at Shego hopefully. "I don't suppose I could give you the recipe and you'd let me go."

She stopped and mulled it over. Finally she shook her head. "No, once we take over the world, you'll have to give it to me anyway. Besides-" She smirked. "When we do, I'm going to make you my personal chef." They finally stopped in front of a room with a single large sliding door, and Shego reached out and pushed a button, opening it.

Ron was shove roughly into the room. It was small, barely larger than his bedroom, but it was packed with equipment. Lining the walls were shelves full of half-built contraptions, wires dangling off the edges. On one side of the room, a set of consoles lined with screens stood lit up. In the center of the room sat a chair; it vaguely looked like something you would find at a dentist's office. This chair, however, had lots of sinister objects attached.

Ron took one look at the chair and turned to Shego. "I don't think I want to sit in that."

"Sure beats the alternative." She said, looking at him.

"What's that?"

Shego grinned maliciously and let her hands glow.

Ron gulped, and sat in the chair. As soon as he was in it, clamps came out and wrapped around his hands and feet, immobilizing him. A few seconds later, Dr. Drakken walked in; he went straight over to the consoles and started punching in a startup sequence. The chair started to make a whirling sound, and adjusted so that Ron was laying almost completely flat.

Ron started panicking-Drakken wasn't explaining things like he usually did. "He-hey, what're you doing? I'm just the buffoon...um...the side kick. What did I do to deserve this?"

"I don't need you, buffoon, I need your evil twin." Drakken didn't even look up.

"Evil twin? Zorpox! Trust me, dude, you really don't want him around. He's no where near as fun as I am. In case you don't remember, he's insane." Ron tried pulling at the restraints, but they didn't even budge. To his surprise, Shego started talking.

"Dr D, he has a point. I still think this is a bad idea."

Drakken growled. "Shego, who's the evil genius who creates the plans? I have this all worked out. He will have to do what we say, or else we change him back, and he's locked away again. I can control him."

Ron realized that he couldn't get out. He could only hope that Kim would be able to beat Zorpox again. "Dude, you're so gonna regret this."

Drakken misunderstood. "What are you going to do to me-you're all tied up." He pushed the final sequence of buttons and watched as a small metal band descended from the top of the chair and settled on Ron's head. Ron tried to focus and stop his evil persona, but just like last time, he lost the fight, and the bad boy took over.

"Let me out." Instead of Ron's normally cheerful voice, a darker, sinister voice came out.

Dr Drakken pushed a button, and Zorpox was released from his restraints. As soon as he was out, he grabbed a couple of nearby parts, attached them quickly, and pointed them toward Drakken. He had moved so fast that Shego was caught flat footed.

"Now, surrender, or I'll show you why I'm the big dog." Zorpox's stared at Drakken, not even looking at Shego. She knew her place, it was Drakken that needed to learn who was boss.

Surprisingly, Drakken looked confident. "I don't think so, buffoon. Try and shoot me."

Zorpox tried to push the button, but wasn't able to get his hand to move. He turned slightly, and fired into the wall; it blew a chunk out the size of his fist. He turned back to Drakken, but was still unable to fire. He frowned, then glared at Drakken.

"Ha! It worked Shego. I added a neural inhibitor to the attitudinator band. Anytime he tries to attack me, it will override his natural responses and keep him from hurting me." He laughed at Zorpox's look of concentration as he tried to fire again.

"I've also programmed it so that you can't tamper with the headband and get around my programming. If you try to open any of the different compartments on the side, it will automatically immobilize you. You could take the band off, but then the attitudinator effect wears off. Is this brilliant or what?" Drakken was practically jumping up and down with glee.

"I still don't like it, but I'm impressed. This might work. It seems like you've thought everything through." Shego tried to sound confident, but couldn't help but feel that this would end badly.

Zorpox looked at Drakken, then Shego. Obviously they were going to use him in their own plan for world conquest, so it was up to him to turn the tables. It sounded like Shego knew he couldn't be trusted, so he needed to make sure she wasn't a threat. He already had the beginnings of a plan, and now was a good a time as any to start.

"Of course it works; obviously Drakken is much better at thinking these things through than you do. He's the evil genius, you're just the sidekick." Zorpox taunted Shego.

Shego stepped forward, her hands glowing and clenched into fists. "If Drakken was half the villain I am, we'd rule the world already!"

"Shego, stop!" Drakken stepped between them, and put his hands out. When he saw the look on her face, he decided that maybe this wasn't the best place to be. "Shego, I need him for my plan."

"Fine." Shego stepped back and glowered at Zorpox. "But if he makes any wrong moves, we're going to see if Zorpox still thinks _you_ are worse than _me_."

Zorpox just smirked. So far, things were going as planned.

X X X X

Minutes later, Zorpox, Drakken and Shego were all in the lair's main lab. Drakken and Zorpox were sitting across from each other discussing evil plans, while Shego was sitting as far from Zorpox as possible, reading a magazine. She was listening in, and concentrated on controlling herself.

"So, you want me to tutor you in Villainy?" Zorpox couldn't believe that was the extent of Drakken's plan. It was no wonder he never took over the world.

Drakken looked at Zorpox. "All of my plans have not had the...best success rate, and Shego suggested that I get outside help."

_Shego really _is_ the smart one. _"What, she hasn't been able to teach you, so she suggested me?"

Across the room, Shego growled.

"No, I figured that you would be a good choice-you did come closest to beating Kim Possible."

Zorpox threw in another taunt. "Without any help from Shego, I might add."

"Yeah, well I didn't see _you_ fighting her." Shego shot back.

"Well, that's the lackey's job."

Shego was out of the chair and across the room in a second. She picked Zorpox up by the collar and flung him across the room, where he slammed into a table. It collapsed, and Zorpox laid in the pile of debris. Shego did a double flip forward, and landed at Zorpox feet, standing above him. "I am no one's lackey..." Shego said dangerously. She ignited her hands, and got ready to blast him, when she heard a voice behind her.

"Shego."

Hearing her name was enough to make her pause. She stepped back, and looked at Drakken.

"Remember the plan-I need him to help me devise a perfect scheme."

She sighed and her hands stopped glowing. "Okay, here's the deal, if you want to use him, that's fine. But I want you to keep a short leash on him; or else I'm going to fry him."

Zorpox thought that this was very interesting. For all of Shego's action, she still listened to Drakken. They trusted each other almost like Kim and Ron did. If Zorpox was going to make this plan work, he'd have to work on the weak link-Drakken.

Shego couldn't control her temper, but that made her a firebrand, ready to attack at the drop of a hat. She was also smarter and much more cunning than Drakken would ever be. The mad doctor, however, was a lot like Ron. Flatter him, make him feel important, feed his pride, and he would quickly turn on Shego. Then, Zorpox would have all the advantage he needed.

Villains didn't apologize, so Zorpox stood up and dusted himself off. He realized that he'd pushed Shego enough for the time being, so he decided to ignore her for now. "If I'm going to help you, I'm going to need some things. I need my outfit from when I went bad last time. I'm also going to need to see all of your inventions, to get an idea of what I can work with."

Drakken smiled. "I'm sure that we can do something."

X X X X X X X X

Kim was confused after her conversation with Monique. A hobby? She'd never had enough time for something like that-free time was something she really had no concept of-and now she'd been given two weeks worth. What did Ron do with his free time? She knew that he liked to play video games-not something she enjoyed...otherwise, he didn't have that much free time either.

Really, any free time he had was times when she was busy and he wasn't-the rest of his time was spent with her, watching movies or just hanging out. But she couldn't do that now, it was no fun to see a movie by yourself. The weird thing was, she was never really alone-there was always someone at her house, or at school, or the mall, or anywhere she was. The last time she had really been alone was the night that Ron was with Felix. She shuddered.

Actually, despite what she'd said to Monique, her mind kept coming back to the cooking issue. She'd taken home economics and managed to pass the class-don't ask what her grade had been-but even still, she really didn't know her way around the kitchen. It wasn't even like she hated to cook; she sort of enjoyed it-as long as Ron was around to help her. The truth was, despite all the things that she'd done, Kim had never really failed at anything...until home economics. Even her trouble with driving paled in comparison.

Cooking-it was the bane of her existence. She realized that it was the one thing that she needed to work on, the one thing that she hadn't reached perfection in. It was no longer about Ron being better than her, but only about her; she felt the need to succeed in the only thing she hadn't. She vowed then and there that she'd learn to cook or die trying-which with her skills was a real possibility.

Kim shook her head to clear it. She could dwell on things later, but now it was time for Cheer practice. She had already dressed out, and was waiting with the rest of the squad. Bonnie hadn't come in yet, so Kim decided to start without her. She signaled to Rufus, and he started the music; just as soon as he pushed the button, Bonnie strolled in, wearing her normal sarcastic sneer. At another signal from Kim, Rufus stopped the music.

Kim stood with her hands on her hips. "Bonnie, where have you been? We waited almost twenty minutes."

"Sorry, Kim, but something more important came up. You can relate to that, can't you?" Bonnie said snidely.

Kim let that go, it wasn't worth getting into an argument about; however what Bonnie said next was.

"So Kim, heard you finally shipped your loser friend off. Did you get rid of him permanently, or will he be coming back?" Bonnie grinned; mentioning Ron always got Kim riled up.

"Actually, B, he will be coming back-with a cooking certificate. You know, if you ask him nicely, I'm sure he'll make the cafeteria lady you're personal chef."

"Doubt it, K, once I tell him how wonderful his cooking is, he'll be throwing himself all over me."

"At least I know that he'll always be my friend. You and Brick never seem to stay together a month. Is it because you're always breaking things off, or because it's easy for him to find someone better. Maybe it's because he doesn't like selfish girlfriends. You know, I've heard he's seeing people behind your back..."

Bonnie looked surprised. "What! Brick's cheating on me? I'll teach him..." Bonnie stormed out of the gym, already planned to break up with Brick.

Kim grimaced. That wasn't quite the result that she wanted. _Just once, I'd like to make Bonnie eat her words. _Well, at least that got Bonnie out of her hair. She turned back to the rest of the cheer squad and got ready to start again. Instead, the Kimmunicator went off.

With a sigh, Kim looked at the squad. "I think we'd better just do this some other day. Bonnie's gone, I know a couple of you have things to do, and it sounds like I have a mission, so I'll see you later." Kim walked over to her backpack and pulled out her Kimmunicator.

"What's up, Wade?"

"Sorry about calling during cheer practice, but it's kind of an emergency." Wade reached for his drink.

"No big, we decided to meet another day. So, what's the big emergency?"

Wade thought Kim looked a little impatient, so he quickly started typing. A small picture of Duff Killigan appeared on the screen. "Okay, here's the deal. It looks like Killigan's up to something. He's stolen a top secret invention from a lab in California. They won't tell me what it is, or what it does, but just mentions that 'you'll know it when you see it.' I've tracked him to a golf course in north California, and your ride is waiting outside."

"Thanks, Wade, I'll check back in a few." Kim clicked off the Kimmunicator and looked at Rufus. "Think we can handle this one without Ron?"

"Uh huh!" Rufus squeaked and gave a confident thumbs up.

Kim appreciated the vote of confidence, but she wasn't nearly as sure.

X X X X X X X X

Zorpox had gone through all of the inventions that Drakken had and divided them into two piles. The far larger pile was full of useless inventions-why would any mad scientist need the parts to make seven toaster ovens? The much smaller second pile included items that Zorpox thought could be used to make a very promising plan.

"Junk, junk, junk, Drakken, most of this stuff is either useless, old, or just plain boring." Zorpox threw another item over his shoulder, already forgetting about it.

Drakken was standing nearby, watching as he tossed the contraptions into the different piles. "Ahhh-don't damage that. That's my only chronological differentiator."

Zorpox turned to look at Drakken. "And what do you use it for?"

"I use it to match the clocks in all of my lairs. Do you know how hard it is to keep track of all those different time zones?"

Zorpox sighed and turned back to the last item. "Useless. Drakken, I think that I can use these items, but I'm going to need some other parts as well. We're going to have to go get them."

"_We_ go get them? Why can't I just send Shego?"

"The most important thing for you to learn, Dr Drakken, is that it's good to know a little about everything. Have you ever infiltrated a place without using Shego?"

"No, b-but she's so good at it."

Zorpox responded scornfully. "Of course she's good at it, but at some point she had to learn too, right? If you learn to do things that your lackeys can do, that gives you that much more control over them. If Shego knows that you can replace her, by doing the job yourself or teaching someone, she'll work that much harder to make sure you don't."

Drakken nodded. That made a certain amount of sense.

Zorpox continued. "Secondly, Ron and Kim always manage to sneak into your hideout without you knowing. If you know how to _sneak_ into a hideout, you know the _vulnerabilities_ of a hideout; then you can plan a trap, and they will fall right for it. Here is lesson one to being an effective super villain, Drakken: Research. If you do your research, it is easy to plan out what people are going to do, how they are going to act, and take advantage of it. If you learn one thing, learn to research your plans."

Dr D realized that was good advice. All of his plans ultimately backfired because of not knowing enough. He hadn't know that the Pan Dimensional Vortex Inducer would create a space/time rip, he hadn't known that the cheese building was made entirely of cheese. Heck, he hadn't even known that Kim Possible could hit the high notes and shatter the ice.

While Drakken was thinking, Zorpox was already coming up with other ideas. "Speaking of research, do you have any info on what some of the other villains are doing? I have another idea, and if I can see what they're doing, I think I've got another way to confuse Kimberly Ann."

Drakken pulled up the files and gave them to Zorpox. He always tried to keep an eye on the other villains, mainly so that he didn't get on their bad side-he really didn't want to fight with another villain when he could be taking over the world. Zorpox started looking at the files, and Drakken stood behind him, reading over his shoulder.

Duff Killigan had recently stolen something from a company called Birdies and Eagles. Drakken couldn't figure out what it did, but it looked like Zorpox knew what it was. Monkey Fist was laying low, so he didn't have anything on him. Same for DNAmy and his cousin, Motor Ed. He never used to spy on his cousin, but after the Doom V episode, he thought it might be a good idea to watch him, as well. Last on the list was Dementor. The villain had been stealing some different chemicals and fuels; Drakken figured they could be used for explosives, or maybe some sort of power generator. He shrugged, not knowing or caring-it wasn't anything that bothered him. Zorpox, however, was grinning more and more as he read, eventually cackling gleefully as he reached the end.

"Oh, this is perfect. With a little work, we can get two nacos for the price of one."

"Um...okay?" Drakken couldn't figure out what Zorpox was planning, but that was the point. He got ready to ask what he was doing, but that was just the time that Shego showed up.

She walked through the doors into the lab, carrying a small box. She had gone out to Ron's house and brought back his belt and outfit. She was not too pleased that she had been sent off on such a stupid errand, and threw the box at Zorpox. She had feared that she would come back to Zorpox waiting for her. Maybe Drakken _did_ have a good hold on this plan.

"Here's you stuff, Zorpox. I shorted out your shield, so don't try and use it. Now why did you want me to get such a stupid outfit? You don't need it."

Zorpox turned to Drakken. "Lesson two. If you're going to take over the world, you have to look intimidating. Capes are always good, and darker colors work well. You also want your face to be different; no one was scared of Anakin Skywalker, but everyone feared Darth Vader. Oh, and never do green, it just doesn't work."

Shego growled at this comment, but restrained herself.

Zorpox closed his eyes and concentrated. His skin seemed to do...something...and then it suddenly changed colors to a pale blue. He reached out and took his outfit and put in on, jumped up on the nearby table, and gave a loud, "Boo-Yah-ha-ha-ha-ha."

Drakken jumped back, and even Shego looked a little uncertain. She casually slipped into a fighting stance, and got ready to attack him if he made a wrong move. Seeing this, Zorpox laughed again, louder and more maniacally.

Abruptly, he stopped his laugh, and stared at the other two villains. He spoke in a more normal tone "Now, would that have had the same effect if I had done it dressed as the buffoon?"

Despite herself, Shego was impressed-and slightly scared. After everything that he had done last time, she had thought that he was crazy. She realized that he wasn't insane, but had been putting on an act. He was actually much smarter and more cunning than she had thought-and that was enough to send chills down her spine.

Ignoring Shego, Zorpox focused on Drakken. "Now, I think it is time for lesson three, if you're going to be a villain, you need other villains to recognize your genius. I think that we can start with Duff Killigan; he also has an item I need for my plan."

Shego had a feeling that Zorpox was about to do something that they all would regret.

* * *

_**A/N** Well, he's back, and already working some big scheme; but what does he have planned for Drakken and Shego?_

_I always figured that despite Zorpox's rather over-the-top actions in 'Bad Boy' he was a lot smarter than anyone realized. I think that a lot of it was granstanding for Shego's benefit, as well-she's never been too patient, and considering the number of things he did that upset her, he might have just been looking to get her riled up._


	4. Golfing in California

_**A/N **First, thank to Eddy13 for beta reading._

_With this chapter, we're finally getting into the story and plot; the first three chapters were really sort of an introduction._**  
**

* * *

**Chapter 4: Golfing in California**

_(Friday Afternoon)_

Kim reached back and pulled the chord on her parachute. She drifted to the ground, and left the equipment where it lay. She hadn't figured it out yet, but somehow Wade always seemed to get her gear picked up and ready for use the next time she needed it. Pushing all other thoughts from her mind, she pulled out the Kimmunicator and focused on Wade.

"Where's Killigan?"

"He's a couple of hundred yards south of you, and it looks like he's trying to sink a putt on the 13th hole. Whoa!"

"What!" Kim looked around, expecting danger.

"He had to have cheated, he's got marked down that he's trying for eagle."

"Wade, focus-is there anything important I need to know?"

He consulted his screens. "He seems to have some weird club attached to his back, I'd watch out for that, Kim."

"Gotcha, Wade, I'm going in." Kim went over to the 14th hole, and waited. A few minutes later, she watched from the bushes as a golf ball came whizzing through the air and dropped within inches of the hole. _Wade was right-that is too good. _Killigan always lost his temper when he did poorly, and since he wasn't a very good golfer, he lost frequently. He had been banned from all the golf courses in the world because he started destroying them in fits of rage. Since then, Killigan had become a better player, but he wasn't _this _good.

Rufus peaked his head out of Kim's pocket and sniffed the air. She saw him, and motioned that he should stay inside. He realized that he wouldn't be able to do much to help here, so he just watched from her pocket. If she needed him, he was right there.

As Killigan walked toward his golf ball, Kim stepped out in between him and the hole. "Kim Possible! What are you doing here, lassie?"

"You've stolen something, and it's time to return it; hand it over."

"You want my new driver, do you, lassie? Well you cannae have it."

Kim was confused. "New driver? You just stole a golf club?"

"'Just a golf club!' This driver has an automatic linear director; it makes sure that I hit my target every time. You just saw my last drive, it almost landed right in the hole. I'll not be letting you take away my new club." At that, Killigan reached into his golf bag and pulled out two of his golf clubs and advanced on her.

He swung sideways with both clubs, hoping to catch her off guard. She easily avoided the attack, doing a back flip that landed her just out of reach. Killigan rushed forward, swinging from both sides, trying to get her to focus on one hand so he could hit her with the other. Kim realized that he had the advantage as long as he had the clubs, so she did a handspring over his head and ran toward the 14th hole. She pulled the flag out of the hole, and used it as a staff.

Killigan charged at her, bringing the clubs down towards her head. She raised the staff, catching the clubs between her hands. She kicked out, but he dodged and swung the club in his left hand. Kim blocked, then staked the flag in the ground and jumped, using the pole to help propel her feet. She caught Killigan in the chest, driving him backwards next to his golf bag.

By this point, Killigan changed tactics. He zipped open his golf bag, and let his special exploding golf balls come out. He started hitting them toward Kim, laughing gleefully as she dodge, some barely missing her. It was then that he realized something was missing. "Where's your sidekick, lassie? Is he sick?"

Kim flipped sideways, watching as two golf balls missed her and hit each other. They exploded, but were far enough away that she had already forgotten about them. "He's out on a vacation for the next couple of weeks."

"Aye, that's good for us villains; I got tired of piecing together my lairs after you two showed up. He always blew up my hideout-and I never have anything explosive; I don't know how he does it."

The mad golfer hit a few more golf balls her way, and she nearly stepped out on one before she backed away. Kim decided to go on the offensive, and used the makeshift staff to bounce some of the golf balls back at him. One exploded near his feet, causing him to back peddle and trip over his golf bag.

The teen jumped forward and knocked the clubs out of his hands; then she used the pole to sweep out his legs. She pushed the end of the pole into his chest. "Looks like you duffed up, Killigan." As she reached down for the special driver, she heard a beeping behind her. As she turned, she spotted a double sized golf ball glowing red. She tried to move out of the way, but it was too little, too late.

The explosion flung her forward, over Killigan and right into the grass. She was able to roll with the fall, and just barely missed falling into the thorn bush nearby. She quickly looked around, and spotted the mad golfer dashing off to his blimp. She tried running after him, but realized that he was too far away. He escaped.

Rufus scampered out of Kim's pocket and stood on her shoulder. They both watched as Killigan's blimp sailed away, then Kim turned to Rufus. "We'll get him next time."

"Uh huh, sure." Rufus didn't sound as confident as earlier.

X X X X X X X X

Later that night, two shadowy figures stood near a ventilation shaft outside of Duff Killigan's castle. The first figure was completely covered from head to toe in black; the second figure was dressed likewise, only his head was exposed, revealing a blue face with a small scar. The first figure pulled out a small contraption and used it to melt the vent. It turned into a gooey mess, then cooled quickly. He then turned to his companion and motioned that he should get in the vent. His companion stepped forward and jumped one, twice, but couldn't reach his target. The first figure cupped his hands, and when his companion stepped in it, he flung him up toward the vent.

Drakken hung on to the vent as best as he could, kicking his feet trying to get inside. Finally, he was able to use his small hands to get some leverage and heave himself in. After laying in the vent for a minute, he turned and leaned out, grabbed Zorpox's hands and pulled him in. Zorpox took this opportunity to encourage Drakken.

"See, you're already doing better. You were able to pull yourself into the vent without any help, unlike when we were doing the run through in your lair. A little more experience, and you'll be as good at this as Shego."

"Really?" Drakken was like a puppy, thrilled to receive any praise.

_No, even Ron is better at this than you. _"Sure, in fact, at this rate, Shego will be out of a job."

They continued the rest of the way silently. Soon the vent reached a grate that led into the lair. Zorpox kicked it out, and hopped down to the ground silently, crouching as he looked around. Drakken was right behind him, but he managed to snag his clothes on an edge of the grate. As he fell, a ripping sound was heard, and Drakken landed missing an entire sleeve. He looked sheepishly at Zorpox, who shook his head sadly. Zorpox consulted his memory, and turned left, heading towards Killigan's vault. He stopped near the door and pulled out a small box with wires sticking out. He attached it to the electronic keypad there and waited for a beep. After he heard it, he reached for the door and pulled it open slowly.

Drakken and Zorpox went inside the vault, looking for their target. Drakken spotted it first, quickly grabbing it and stuffing it inside the bag he had with him. They both got ready to leave, when they heard a voice behind them.

"What have we here? Thieves? I'll teach you little buggers." Killigan reached for his putter, but hesitated when he saw the unmasked figure. "Dr Drakken?"

"Killigan; I need something from you, and I don't think you'll give it to me, so I'm taking it."

Duff Killigan was slightly confused. "Why are you here? Where's Shego-she's usually the one who steals things. Did she quit?"

Zorpox looked at Drakken, purposefully ignoring the mad golfer. "See? Even Killigan knows that Shego, not you is the better villain. You just an evil poser. You need to prove your worth by becoming a better villain, make the other villains see that you're the brains of the outfit-they all hold Shego in higher regard than they do you. Now follow my lead."

Drakken stopped to mull this over, while Zorpox turned to Killigan. "Let us go." The voice was cold, emotionless, and vaguely familiar. The golfer just laughed.

"You expect me to just let you go after you break in here? Are you daft, man?"

"No, just confident." Zorpox stood with his arms crossed.

"And who do you think you are, Drakken's new sidekick? You don't stand a chance without Shego; don't make me laugh."

Zorpox looked over to Drakken, waiting to see if he would jump in. He did.

"S-she's not half the villain that I am, I don't need her to succeed, she's just my sidekick, he's my partner."

_Okay, not the most terrifying of responses, but I guess I need to show how it's done._

Zorpox reached into his clothes and pulled out his small contraption. It looked like a hairdryer with a small dish on the end. He pointed it at Killigan and smiled broadly under his hood.

"Here's the deal, Duff-we're leaving, and if you try to stop us, you'll regret it." His voice left no doubt that he would follow through with his threat.

"You're going to stop me with that wee little thing?" He looked unconvinced. Before Zorpox could respond, Kiligan threw his club at Zorpox's hand. Zorpox didn't even flinch, calmly firing at the club and vaporizing it. He then made a slight change to his weapon, and fired again at Killigan.

It hit the other villain in the chest, dropping him where he stood. Drakken walked forward and poked him with his foot. "Did you kill him?"

"No, just stunned; I change the laser's output so that it knocked him out."

Drakken looked at Zorpox suspiciously. "You didn't tell me that your laser could do that."

"No, I didn't."

There was a long pause. "Um, okay...next time, explain all of your plan to me."

"Why?" Zorpox sounded confused.

"Because I said so, and you have to do what I say, or else I'll turn you back into the buffoon."

Zorpox stepped forward and slapped him on the back. "Ah, there's that backbone that I was looking for. Don't lose that. Now, we need to show Killigan that there is a punishment for trying to stop us."

Zorpox started explaining what he wanted to do to Duff Killigan's lair, and Drakken started to grin evilly. In his excitement over the plan, he didn't realize that Zorpox hadn't promised to explain his future plans. As soon as he finished explaining, Drakken dashed off, leaving Zorpox standing and shaking his head. The dark-clothed sidekick turned, then made his way toward Killigan's kitchen.

X X X X X X X X

After Kim had gotten home, she had told her parents how the day had gone; she focused on Killigan's escape, but left out her thought on learning to cook. They were sympathetic, but really didn't have any advice to offer her. Missions were Kim's thing, so they just left her to solve that problem. Mrs. Possible knew that there was something else bothering Kim, and almost asked about it, but decided that Kimmie needed to come to her first.

As her mind drifted to cooking, Kim couldn't help but look at her mom-Ann Possible had tried to teach her daughter to cook-she really had-but every attempt ended in disaster. First it was the blender...then the can opener...then the stove...Kim wasn't sure how much of the kitchen was still original with the house.

Her mother knew a lot about cooking, that was sure-even though Ron knew more, Kim felt a certain bond with her mother, probably from all her failed attempts at learning to cook. Since she couldn't ask her mom to teach her, she needed to find another way of learning-she could probably check out a book from the library if it came to that. But first, she felt she needed a break.

Kim went upstairs and threw herself down on her bed. It had been a long day, made even longer because she hadn't had Ron to talk to. After Killigan had gotten away, she had spent over an hour talking with Global Justice. GJ had contacted her and told her that they were going to send an agent in and not to worry about the golf club. Since most of the villains had been quiet lately, they had been able to send in their top agent. Dr. Director told her that since most of the villains were between lairs or working on a new plan, Kim should take some time off and relax.

Nobody seemed to realize that fighting villains _was _her way to relax. She was able to go all over the world and help people, which was much more satisfying than sitting at home and watching TV. She had told no one, so not even Monique knew how totally she had freaked when she was home alone with nothing to do. Ron had been busy with Felix, and everyone she knew had plans. She craved contact with other people; that was part of the reason she was with Ron every chance she got. He had a tendency to prattle on and on at times, but Kim knew she always had something she could talk to him about.

And now she was thinking about Ron again. He'd been gone for barely a day, and she was completely at a loss what to do. She tried to think back to what she had done when he had gone off to Japan as an exchange student. Actually, she'd spent the entire week fighting with Monique over Hirotaka-so that didn't really help her much. She could always try and find a date-but that was really desperate-she'd only be looking for someone to stand in until Ron got back-and no one could replace Ron.

Kim didn't like the way her thoughts were going, so she rolled off the bed and grabbed her schoolwork. She quickly pulled out what she needed and started working; first thing was to read some of the book Barkin gave out. Just as she pulled it out, the Kimmunicator beeped. She grabbed it and pushed a button, and Wade popped up.

"Um, Kim, just got news on the Duff Killigan thing. The agent that was sent in wants to talk to you..." At this, Wade hesitated. _I don't think she's gonna like this_. "Dr. Director sent in agent Will Du."

Kim grimaced, but knew she had to take the call. "Put him on Wade."

The view switched from Wade's face to the smug Will Du. "Ah, Kim. I have captured my target. I thought you should know that I have succeeded where you failed. I knew this wasn't a job for an amateur, but Dr Director said that I had to let you try before I got the go ahead to capture Duff Killigan."

Kim hated his attitude, but couldn't argue with his results. "And the invention?"

"The...ah...what?" Will Du looked confused. That hadn't been in the briefing.

Kim stared at him. _How can GJ be that successful and yet be that incompetent? _"Duff Killigan stole an experimental Golf club-that's why I was after him. Don't tell me that you didn't get it."

Du paused. "I...um...didn't see anything like that. Since the lair is a mess, it is possible I missed it, but I will have the other agents check."

"Wait-hold on. The lair's a mess? Killigan always keeps his clubs and golf balls organized. What are you talking about?"

"Normally I would not discuss such things with an amateur such as yourself, but since you assisted me earlier when I captured Killigan, I suppose I can tell you."

Kim nearly exploded at him for that comment, but took a deep breath instead. "Please tell me."

"Killigan's castle was a total wreck. It looked like someone had gone in and destroyed the place. All of his golf clubs were bent or broken, his golf balls were smashed, and the rubber bands inside were taken out and spread all across the floor. His kitchen was ransacked, with all of his recipes thrown around. Even the giant mirror in his main room was smashed. I found Killigan unconscious inside his vault, no word yet on how long he will be unconscious." As Du was discussing all this, he pulled up pictures that he had taken of the destruction.

"Do you know who did this?"

"Yes, but I'm not sure I should discuss an ongoing case with an amateur..." Kim started growling, so Du thought it might be a good idea to tell her anyway. "Monkey Fist. We found quite a bit of monkey hair, as well as some bits of black cloth."

"That doesn't make sense! Why would Monkey Fist be after that golf club? He always goes after monkey things-no, something's wrong here." Kim frowned, thinking about it, but coming up with no answers.

"Who else could it be? You're just jealous that you, an amateur, was shown up by a real professional. I'm sorry that you-" Kim cut him off in disgust. Wade appeared back on screen.

"Sorry about that, Kim. Anyway, I have a theory about that special golf club. It looks like its primary purpose is to direct an object to hit a certain point, up to an error of about 0.00001%."

"Um, okay...not seeing the connection, Wade."

"Basically, it will let a person hit a golf ball that will almost always land near the hole. But, it you hook this thing up to some sort of satellite system, it would let the weapons be able to hit a target with pinpoint accuracy. They could drill a hole in a quarter from space, and not hit the guy who's holding it. Kim, someone could create a weapon that could threaten anyone in the world."

Kim sighed. "Great, I went from a missing golf club to a plan for world domination. Hopefully it won't end with something worse." She thought a moment. "I still don't think that it was Monkey Fist. Wade, could you do a check on all the other villains and see what they're working on? I think there's something we're missing."

"Sure, Kim, but it'll take a while."

Kim yawned. "No hurry, it's probably about time I went to bed anyway." She yawned again, then looked surprised. "I'll check back tomorrow-I guess I really need my sleep. Good night, Wade."

"'Night, Kim." He signed off. Kim looked over at her discarded homework, and decided it could wait one more day. She shoved it off her bed, then laid on top of the covers. She needed to get ready for bed, but instead she let her mind wander. She wondered what Ron was doing at this very moment.

X X X X X X X X

Zorpox chuckled quietly, looking at the golf club sitting on the table in front of him. Everything was going exactly as he planned-but Drakken didn't know it. The caped villain had been able to get the real item he needed from Duff Killigan; the golf club was just a bonus. He glanced over at Shego, who was trying to look disinterested, then looked to Drakken, who seemed eager. Zorpox explained his "plan."

Drakken nodded, thinking he had a good grasp of it, so he tried to explain it back to make sure he had it down.

"Okay, with the sensor on this Golf Club, and a few other items, we should be able to create a system of satellites that will be able to target any city in the world-from there, we can threaten every country in the world, and they will all have to bow to our demands-"

Zorpox interrupted, "-but that won't work for all countries, because some of the leaders will be willing to sacrifice their own people to stay in power. If you cause world wide destruction, people will hate you, and you will have lots of rebellions-not to mention if you kill everyone, you won't have anyone to rule over. Instead, focus on the leaders-with these satellites, you can fire into one of their windows and set their coffee mug on fire-that will get their attention. From there, fear will do the rest-and it will be the leaders that fear you, not the people. In fact, do things right, and the people will love you for freeing them from the evil tyrants that rule their counties."

Drakken nodded-it made sense, but it wasn't something he had ever thought about-actually making the people like him. He always figure that if he took over the world, he would either have to destroy lots of things to get people to cooperate, or he would have to mind control everyone. To actually have the people like him-it was a radical concept.

Shego wasn't impressed. "That's your plan-laser satellites? That not any different than something Drakken would do. Actually, it's less impressive than some of his other plans." 'Operation Too Complicated To Work' came to mind.

Drakken tried to shush her. "Shego, there's more to the plan than that." He paused, turning to Zorpox. "There...is more to the plan than that, right?"

"Yes." Zorpox rolled his eyes. "-okay, after we wrecked Killigans lair, I left a few...things behind. After we finished, I tossed a lot of monkey fur around."

Drakken frowned in thought. "Monkey fur? Why?"

Shego sighed. "Why do you think, Dr D? Where does monkey fur come from?"

"Um...Monkeys?"

The villainess smirked. "Very good, Drew, you know your animals."

Drakken gritted his teeth. "Shego..." He growled, then stopped, thinking. "Monkey Fist-you made it seem like Monkey Fist was the one that attacked Killigan-that way Kim will go after him instead of us."

Zorpox nodded twice sarcastically, then shook his head. "No-Kimberly won't be fooled by that-what reason would Monkey Fist have for stealing a golf club-it's not a monkey artifact, so he couldn't care less. It will, however, fool GJ-in fact, they've already fallen for it." Zorpox turned to the large computer screen behind him and pulled up the footage he had of Kim and Du's conversation. He had easily been able to tap into Global Justice's systems, and it had been child's play to track Will Du and find out he believed the decoy.

Shego was confused. "We never have to worry about GJ anyway-it's Kimmie that always give us problems-shouldn't you be distracting her?"

Zorpox sneered at her. "Be quiet. Just because you can't hope to comprehend my plan doesn't mean you get to question me. You're just the sidekick-you're only purpose is to follow orders."

Shego's eyes widened at the insult, and she picked Zorpox off his feet by his collar. She just held him there, contemplating what she was going to do to him. He was totally unconcerned, and he looked over at Drakken. "Aren't you going to do something?"

Drakken stepped over and grabbed her arm. "Let go, Shego." She growled, but set him back down. "And you-" Now Drakken grabbed Zorpox by his collar, and looked him in the eyes. "You quit taking shots at Shego. We're supposed to be fighting against Kim Possible, not each other." He let Zorpox go.

Zorpox bowed his head and acted sorry. "You're right-this is a waste of our time." With his head down, neither of them could see the glint in his eyes. "You're right, I'll explain."

He lifted his head back up, looking at Shego. "Kimberly Ann has no respect for Will Du-he's an overconfident lack wit who doesn't realize that Kim is better than him in any way. Since she's able to see through the deception and he isn't, she won't look any further that the first person she finds. She is always able to figure out what villains are going to do by having Wade check on them-seeing what supplies they are getting. Drakken gave me that list of what each of the villains are doing, and Dementor is working with a bunch of chemicals that can be used to make rockets. Kimberly will think that he framed Monkey Fist, and go after him-leaving us free to work."

"Why didn't you just have something at the scene to make Kim go after him right away?" Drakken asked.

Shego knew this one. "Because this way her computer guy will have to do the research, meaning it will take that much more time before she's ready to get us."

Zorpox nodded-at least she understood. "Also, since Kimberly has to go through all that trouble to figure out that Dementor is the one who stole the club from Killigan, she'll be patting herself on the back because she was able to see through the decoy. Since she thinks she knows exactly what's going on, she'll be even more confused when he's not the one who stole the golf club-and she won't have any clue who she needs to go after next-buying us even more time."

Drakken turned to Shego. "What do you think?"

"I think it's a waste of time. Just vaporize Kimmie and be done with it."

Suddenly, Zorpox's attitude changed. His voice lowered, and he eyed Shego, his face dark. "No-I won't let you hurt her." He took a step toward her, his eyes sparkling dangerously.

Shego had to consciously stand her ground. What she really wanted to do was retreat from Zorpox, or else attack him right out. Something about him scared her, no matter how much she fought it-he just didn't make sense to her. She didn't understand him, all his plans never seemed to make sense-then again, maybe that's why he was so dangerous and able to almost beat Kimmie.

Zorpox was always trying to do something for himself, which was understandable, but the way he did it was always weird. With the way he thought things through, Zorpox could create a plan to kill Kim easily-but for some reason that wasn't part of his agenda. Then again, it was the same with Drakken-but while the mad doctor just wanted to be able to boast about how much better he was, Zorpox had some more sinister reason in mind. She started to say something, but Drakken was already talking.

"If you kill her, Shego, you can't gloat; I want her alive so she can recognize that I finally beat her, even if I had help. It will be even better when she realizes it was her sidekick that helped us-she'll never stand the shame." Drakken grinned; he was already imagining the scene-Kim Possible, defeated, finally forced to admit that Drakken was better than she was. He turned to say something else, then yawned. He blinked in surprise, then realized he'd been up for over twenty-four hours, first creating the attitudinator headband, then working with Zorpox.

He looked at the other two, then grinned sheepishly. "I think that we should call it a night-we can continue this in the morning." Zorpox gave him a hard look, and the blue villain rethought his words. "I-I mean we need to get rest before tomorrow-" The teen shook his head again. The mad doctor thought harder, but didn't know what Zorpox was expecting. The blond leaned over and whispered in Drakken's ear.

"Oh...oh yes-Leave me now, I desire rest..." It came out weak, but the intent was still there. Shego gave a half laugh and left. Zorpox gave a small nod, then made his way back to the room Drakken had prepared. The mad doctor sat down, then leaned back in his chair. It was harder to be a villain than he thought. He rocked back in his chair, and went too far. The chair tipped, dropping Drakken on his back.

He groaned and laid there, just staring up at the ceiling, then heard movement from the door. Shego came back in, then went over to one of the tables, reaching for her forgotten magazine. As she moved inside, she spotted Drakken on the ground. She snickered. "You know, Dr D, I think a bed would be more comfortable."

"Save the sarcasm, Shego, help me up." He raised his hands, motioning toward her. She looked at him, grinning slightly. "Shego, now! Do as I say!"

She went over and grabbed his hands, helping him halfway up. She leaned down, looking him in the eye. "I'll do things when I want to, Sport, not before." She let him go, and he dropped back against the ground again. She laughed at his confused look, then grabbed her magazine and left.

Drakken sighed-everyone was against him. What did he do to deserve this? He got up off the floor, then made his way to bed.

X X X X

While Drakken went to bed, Shego decided that she really wanted to get a snack before she went to sleep. She hoped that maybe a little food would help her to come up with some sort of idea of how to deal with Zorpox. She made her way to the cafeteria, but paused in the doorway when she saw the villain inside. She hesitated, ready to turn and leave, but he had already heard her and turned to look. With Zorpox watching her, she didn't dare show any fear, so she moved toward him boldly.

Shego walked up to the teen, still wary of him, but curious as well. She decided to ask something on her mind. "Zorpox, why are you so interested in protecting Princess-you know that she'll try and stop you. To her, you're just another villain, masquerading as her friend-she'll lock you away again, given half a chance-why don't you just kill her? Surely you're smart enough to come up with something."

The caped villain looked contemplative. "I have dozens of ways I could kill her, but that's really not the question you should be asking yourself." He leaned in closer, conspiratorially. "What you should be asking yourself is, 'How would Zorpox kill _me_?'" He grinned as she frowned. "It would actually be relatively simple-run electricity through your bath, or cause the floor in your room to drop out, maybe have a panel explode as you walked by." He pulled his laser out and placed it against her chest. "Heck, I could kill you right here."

Her eyes widened, but then she shook her head. "You can't kill me, Drakken made it so you can't hurt us."

Zorpox's grin widened. "He made it so I couldn't hurt him-he said nothing about _you_." Zorpox's smirk turned predatory.

Now Shego felt the first trickle of fear. Was he lying? She looked into his eyes and came to a sickening realization-he wasn't. She stared into his eyes, saw his cold look, and realized she was going to die-he was going to kill her-right here, in the middle of the cafeteria. She could hear the conversation now. _Well, she attacked me-I killed her in self-defense. _She tensed up, waiting for the searing pain as he fired.

"BOOM!" Zorpox yelled.

Shego backpedaled, then fell, landing hard. It wasn't until a full ten seconds later that she realized she'd stopped breathing. Her heart started pounding in her chest, and she jumped back to her feet. Now that she realized he was just playing her, Shego's icy fear turned to a white hot rage. He just laughed.

"Come now, Shego, you didn't think I'd kill you here-not while you're still useful to me." He stared at her with narrowed eyes. "Don't mistake that for compassion. Tools are discarded as soon as they outlive their usefulness." He turned and strode away, his cape twirling around him.

Shego didn't know whether to be outraged, or go lock herself into her room until this was over. She couldn't help but feel that she'd just come within a hair's breadth of being killed, that Zorpox had been ready to kill her, but something held him back. She realized her hands were shaking, and consciously focused, regaining her composure.

She took a deep breath and made her way to bed, but something told her that she wouldn't be getting much sleep.

* * *

_**A/N** First I have to say-One of my favorite scenes in So the Drama, and one of the funniest, is at the beginning, after Kim parachutes down onto her lawn, she pulls her helmet off, then just casually tosses it to the ground. I always figured that Wade must somehow get it back to her-either that, or there's a pile of discarded helmets in front of her house._

_To everyone hoping for-or expecting-a Kim/Zorpox confrontation, well, not quite yet; but I will say that the Kim and Zorpox story lines will be intertwined...even if neither one of them realizes it.  
_


	5. Shego's bad day

_**A/N **One thing that always bothered me about the series was the ambiguity about the days-a lot of times, one scene would be night, the next broad daylight, then night again, and I was always left with the feeling time wasn't passing, the sun was just being turned on and off to suit the scene. So, for all the readers, I've included the day under the chapter titles so you don't wonder._

_And, as always, thanks to Eddy13 for beta checking and catching my errors._

_EDIT: Jimmy1201 caught an error; turns out a blender isn't the same as a mixer. I didn't catch that, but I've fixed it now. Hopefully no one was too confused.**  
**_

* * *

**Chapter 5: Shego's Bad Day**

_(Saturday Morning)_

Kim woke up the next morning, sore and tired. She hadn't gotten much sleep, tossing and turning throughout the whole night. She kept replaying her fight with Duff Killigan. Kim didn't always catch her foes on their first fight, but it galled her to think that Du had been called in to "clean up her mess." The agent was the biggest snob she'd ever met, second only to Bonnie in the irritation department. Throw in the fact that he'd somehow managed to botch the mission, and Kim's confidence in his competency was now at an all time low.

The teen finally got up and dressed, then tried to decide what she was going to do for the day. Her dad was out at the space center, working on a top secret project; he kept raving on and on about how the Hephaestus project could be the new pinnacle of space exploration. He went on to explain all of his ideas and thoughts on the project, but it was all too advanced for her. She told her dad that, and he gave her a sheepish grin, then explained that it had been over the heads of most of his research specialists too.

Her mother had actually been called in first thing this morning to work on a tricky brain problem of some sort. Being one of the top brain surgeons in the country meant that she was actually on call from hospitals all over the country-she had advised doctors in numerous cases from the east coast to the west.

The twins, thank goodness, were busy with their own little project, and would probably be gone all day. With all of their stunts, they'd been banned from every hardware and electronics store in Middleton and Lowerton. They actually had to drive all the way to Upperton to get their supplies, but had called in their own favors to get there; even still, it would take them almost six hours round trip...even more if they blew something up.

Her family was busy on each of their projects...perhaps she should get her own. She hesitantly looked in the kitchen, then gathered her courage and walked in. She looked around at the different appliances, not recognizing half of them. She frowned, then walked over to a particularly menacing looking...thing.

She just kind of stared at it, waiting for it to attack her as most other things had. Instead, the appliance just sat, mocking her in its inactivity. She reached a hand out toward it, then paused, before placing her hand on the base. She must have accidentally pushed the start button, because the machine began making a clicking and whirling sound. Kim immediately pulled her hand away, but the appliance still kept making noises.

Kim grabbed it with both hands and tried to turn it off, but couldn't figure out how it worked. She repeatedly slapped the start button, but now it wouldn't shut down. Despite the noise and movement, nothing really seemed to be happening, so Kim was lucky in that regard...or so she though. Just as she was considering what to do next, it began leaking a black liquid that started to pool on the counter, then drip off onto the floor. Now Kim really started to freak out.

Finally the machine seemed to make a last gasping chug, then died in her hands. She stared at it, amazed and wary, waiting for it to do something else. She looked over the top of the appliance, and finally saw why it had stopped. Rufus was standing on the counter, holding the electrical plug in his tiny little paws. He looked at her and shook his head, indicating that it was a bad idea to continue. Fortunately, Kim agreed.

She cleaned up the kitchen, Rufus helped, then made her way back up to her room. She sat at her computer, booted it up, then went onto a cooking website. From there, she was able to learn about the different things in her kitchen, what they did, what they were called, and how they worked. She learned about the toaster oven, the food processor, as well as the name of many different utensils. She learned the correct way to use the blender, how to open a can and not cut herself on the edges, even that it was a bad idea to put the jam on your bread before you put it in the toaster.

When Kim made her way back downstairs four hours later, she was ready for anything that kitchen could throw at her.

X X X X X X X X

Shego drifted in sleep, a nameless dread gripping her heart. She was having a nightmare, of a dark clothed figure, chasing her, hunting her like an animal. She was running and running, only to trip and fall-the thing got closer before looming over her. She clawed at the ground in a mad scramble to get away, finally finding purchase-she got up and began running again. The specter laughed at her helplessness, taunting her in her inability to fight back, to defend herself. She realized the figure seemed like a villain she had fought long ago. Finally the shape solidified into one much more familiar-Zorpox. He chuckled, raising his blaster to point at her...he fired, and her dream dissolved in a flash of white.

She woke abruptly, rolling out of her bed to drop onto the floor. She landed crouched, breathing hard as if she'd just went ten rounds with Kim. She didn't even realize that her hand was gripping one of her bedposts, her glowing fist turning the metal frame into useless scrap. She finally stood up and released her grip, finger marks indented in the metal. With the adrenaline still running through her, she decided to burn off her fear by doing a few warm-ups. She began with a slow stretching, before finally working her way up to full speed practice.

As she worked out, she considered the events of the last day...had it only been one day? Ron may have been a buffoon, but Zorpox was no laughing matter; the villain was easily as smart as Drakken...well, technologically as smart-he'd already shown he was much smarter than the mad doctor in other areas. Zorpox had played the mad scientist role well, causing everyone to think he was nothing more than crazy-but it was all a ploy. The villain had planned the entire thing out to make him seem like less of a threat.

And then she'd gone and played right into his hands. He'd been taunting her, mocking her, causing her to lose her composure time and again-she was quickly losing any sort of credibility she had with Drakken. Shego prided herself on her professionalism, her coolness under most circumstances-but over the last day Zorpox had caused her to blow up more than once-he was able to get under her skin even better than Kim did!

What was worse was that he wasn't afraid of her...she could easily skewer the villain on her claws, but he seemed at best unthreatened. He almost seemed to find her attacks laughable-and that was an unusually occurrence for Shego. She was used to threats getting her what she wanted-the other villains feared her, despite their skills. Even Kim feared her, a little, and the teen had the skills to fight back-Ron was nothing more than a comic buffoon who couldn't fight to save his life. But despite this, she just couldn't figure Zorpox out. She knew that he was going to try and double cross Drakken, but she needed proof. She would have to wait until he provided some.

The was a whoosh behind her, and her door opened. "Shego, I-" Drakken's eyes widened as she turned, finishing her practice and brandishing a clawed hand at his throat. He gulped. Dr Drakken managed to squeak out, "I can see you're busy, Zorpox and I will be working in the lab-" Discussion finished, he dashed away from her, scared stiff. Shego just brought her hands to her face and wiggled her claws. _I've still got it._

X X X X

After causing her employer to run from her room like a scared chicken, Shego had spent the rest of the morning trying to relax after the previous night. She avoided Drakken and Zorpox, choosing to read her magazines and doing some suntanning. As she did so, she let her mind wander, considering her new foe. She didn't trust him, she knew that he was just playing Drakken for his own ends-but it wasn't anything that she could prove. She had always trusted her instincts, they had never let her down-and they were telling her now that Zorpox was a hundred miles of bad road.

The villainess sat up, tapping her sharpened claws on the nearby table. She hated to admit it, but Zorpox may be smarter than her-she would have to watch him closely, until he slipped up and she got her proof. She reclined again, finally letting herself relax some. It had almost reached midday and she realized that she hadn't heard anything from the villainous team; she decided that it was time for her to do some checking up. They had been awfully quiet, and Drakken hadn't called her in to do anything all day.

On a normal day, Dr D had her doing something, even if it was just trying to train some of the henchmen; he was paying her, after all, and didn't want that money to go to waste. Instead, after Zorpox showed up, all she had done was go on an errand for the caped buffoon. That job could have been done by anyone-and they sent someone with her talents to do it. It was an insult to her skills. She had worked very hard to make herself indispensable, and Zorpox had dismissed her and nearly rendered her useless in just a day. She walked quietly to the lab, intent on giving Drakken another reminder about her skills. She crept up to his usual chair, preparing to step out and scare him. Instead, she got the surprise of her life.

"Boo-Yah-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!" Zorpox jumped up out of the chair and threw his hands in the air.

Shego back peddled quickly, and tripped over a bunch of power cords laying on the ground. She instantly recovered and launched herself at Zorpox. Somehow she missed him, and he laughed again. She crouched and faced him, waiting for him to make his move.

The villainess growled at him. "Where's Drakken?" As much as she hated to admit it, she hoped Zorpox hadn't killed him. She promised herself that if something happened to Dr D, she'd get Zorpox as her last service to her boss.

"Drakken? Oh, he didn't tell you? He went out to get some things for my plan." Zorpox walked close to Shego and circled around her. "Don't worry, I won't hurt him...as long as he's still useful to me."

Shego turned with him, making sure that he never got behind her. "So, you _are_ just using him."

"Now, now, Shego, I prefer to say that I'm helping him as long as it serves my interests. That's just what you do, isn't it? You'd leave Drakken at the drop of a hat if you thought it would be best for you, riiiiiight?" Zorpox leaned in, causing Shego to back away.

She poked one finger out at him. "Yes, I'll always do what's best for me. That's what makes a good villain; but I think that Dr D has potential, and I think that I can help bring that out. Right now what's best for me is to stay with Drakken. If that changes in the future, I'm outta here. But I don't think you'll be around to see it."

Zorpox laughed loudly. "You may be right, but you won't be around either." He leaned in close again and whispered to her.

Shego's eyes widened, she couldn't believe what Zorpox was saying. Then again, Dr. D had talked about it before, but she'd always said no. It was even in her contract. Was he doing it now, after all their time together?

Just as Zorpox finished whispering, Drakken came walking in. He stopped as soon as he saw them, and waited for someone to say something. Zorpox turned to Drakken and smiled. Shego looked confused, shook her head, and stared at Drakken, like she was seeing him for the first time.

Zorpox broke the uncomfortable silence. "Drakken, have you brought me what I needed?"

As soon as Drakken remembered why he had gone out, he turned his head and looked at his feet, then the wall, anywhere but right at Zorpox. "Um, I-I went out to try and get them, bu-but I don't have any money left."

"Wonderful." Zorpox said flatly. "You expect me to launch a scheme to take over the world, and you don't have anything of use. I tell you to steal the items, and you want to send Shego. Now you go out to buy the items, and you're broke!" He started quietly and finally ended shouting in Drakken's face.

Drakken cowered away from Zorpox, and even Shego looked uncertain at his outburst. Zorpox's face had flushed a darker blue, giving his skin an unhealthy appearance, and he looked crazed. He turned around, and it looked like it took him a lot of effort to get his temper under control. Finally he seemed to regain his composure, and he walked right up to Drakken.

"I need it all." His voice was quiet, calm, and extremely unnerving.

"Wha-what?" Drakken didn't know what he was talking about.

"Obviously I can't expect you to be able to do anything unless you're taught correctly, so I need it all-control of all your projects, all your henchmen, all your funds. Give me that, and I can give you a plan like no other, a plan that will guarantee success."

"No." Shego stepped in between them, bringing a halt to the conversation. "There's no way." She turned to Drakken. "Dr D, if you give him this, he'll double cross you, and that'll be the end of it." She looked over her shoulder and glared at Zorpox.

He stared back. "What can I do? I have to follow your orders, I can't mess with this head band, there's nothing I _can_ do. Besides, Shego, are you saying that you can't handle me?"

She tried to make Drakken understand. "Most villains have easy to understand motives-self interest and power-they want to take over the world; but I'm not sure what it is Zorpox wants. He's unpredictable, and that makes him highly dangerous. I think you need to pull the plug on this, now."

Drakken was confused, not sure what to make of things. It seemed like Zorpox was doing good work, and his head band should prevent Zorpox from doing anything Drakken didn't want him to. But as much as he hated to admit it, Drakken often listened to Shego's advice, and she sounded quite sure about this.

Zorpox spoke up again. "Oh, I see how it is. She's _scared_-scared that she's going to lose her position. Scared that I'm going to replace her as your partner. She doesn't want your plan to be successful, because that means that she'll be out of a job. Think about all the times she's held back your plans."

Drakken frowned, and Shego spoke up angrily. "What do you mean-I'm the only one here that's competent. I help him push his plans forward."

Zorpox looked at her. "Oh, I'm sorry, did I hit a nerve? Are you telling me that you, Shego, are the key to his successes?"

"Well, yes-without me, he can't get anywhere."

"Then if all of his plans fail, it's because you want them to-that's the only explanation, since it can't be Drakken's fault. You just said he only succeeds when you help."

Drakken turned to her with narrow eyes. He completely ignored that Zorpox had said he was incompetent and focused on Shego instead. "Is this true? Are you holding my plans back-because you don't want me to succeed? Are you afraid I won't need you any more?"

Shego was at a loss for words. Drakken was falling for Zorpox's lies. And yet, part of her wondered if there might be some truth to it. Shego knew that she could create a plan just as good as any of Drakken's, maybe even better. Was she afraid of losing her job if Drakken won? She shook her head and the thoughts vanished. No, she didn't create her own plans because she was lazy. She didn't want to do the work necessary to rule the world. She opened her mouth to say this, but Zorpox was already talking again.

"She only works for you because you pay the bills-and as long as you continue to pay, it's in her best interests to make sure you never win." Zorpox grinned at Shego, and she gave him a hateful glare. He continued. "Don't take my word on it-listen to what Shego herself said." Zorpox pushed a button on his belt.

Shego listened, a pit forming in her stomach. Sure enough, the conversation from earlier came out from the speakers in the lab. She heard Zorpox's voice, then her own.

"_You'd leave Drakken at the drop of a hat if you thought it would be best for you, riiiiiight?"_

"_Yes, I'll always do what's best for me. Right now what's best for me is to stay with Drakken. If that changes in the future, I'm outta here."_

Shego turned to the mad doctor, her face pale. She knew Drakken wouldn't believe her after hearing that, but she had to try. "That wasn't what I said-well, I said it, but that wasn't all I said. I-I said that I work for you because I think you can become a great villain."

Zorpox had walked right up behind her and practically whispered in her ear. "And he will, Shego, he will. Only _I'll_ be the one to bring him to greatness, and you-you'll just become another nameless lackey."

With a roar, she spun around, striking him in the chest with her hand. He slammed back into the wall, hitting his head. The caped villain dropped to his knees, dazed, and Shego kicked him in the head. He sprawled on the ground. Shego stepped forward to deliver another blow, but Drakken stepped in front of her.

She growled at him, and nearly shoved him out of the way. "Move it Dr D. I'm finishing this now."

The villainess was surprised when Drakken boldly stepped forward and grabbed her wrists. He forced her backward, until she fell into a chair behind her. "I told you, Shego, focus on the plan. Whether he's telling the truth or not, he's right-I have to give him control."

Shego looked at him, angry. "No! You give him any more control, and he's got everything-get it through your thick head, Drakken, he's only working with you until he gets what he wants. I mean, look." She pointed at the head band. "You have to use that to make him follow orders-do you think he's really working for you?"

Zorpox laughed from the floor before Drakken could say anything. "Don't you see, Drakken, this isn't even about me! This is about you actually doing something right." He tapped the headband as he stood. "She just can't believe that this thing is actually working correctly. She's never had faith in any of your inventions, has she? But they've all worked, haven't they?"

Dr Drakken looked at her, then puffed out his chest. "He's right-all my inventions and doomsday weapons have worked-it's not my fault I keep losing, it's yours and Kim Possible's. Well, this one is going to work, Shego, and you don't have to do anything to help." He placed a hand on Zorpox's shoulder, and didn't notice the other villain grimace at the touch. "We are going to do this, and I am going to give him control."

Her eyes darkened. "Fine...but mark my words Dr D...this will not end well."

Drakken watched as Zorpox turned to leave; he followed the caped villain out of the room. Shego just sat in the chair, numb, as the realization hit her. She'd done it again-exploded at him, lost her control and composure, only proving to Drakken that she was a loose cannon. She realizing that there had just been a shift in power. Drakken would trust Zorpox more than her, would listen to his advice over hers. Shego knew she had to walk a very fine line now, otherwise Drakken may decide that she wasn't as useful as he thought.

As she considered the events that had just transpired, she grimaced. The villain had planned the entire thing out to make him seem like less of a threat. But now he was showing his true colors to her at least; how easy it was for him to manipulate and cause people to react just as he wanted them too-and therein lied Shego's problem. All she'd been doing these last two days was reacting-she'd reacted to his making the laser, but not prepared by taking out the supplies he'd used to build it. She'd been reacting to all his taunts, instead of thinking about them, and realizing that there was nothing to get upset about. If she'd been thinking, she'd even realized that Zorpox was just recording her for later.

Well, no more. Time for Shego to go on the offensive, dig up some dirt on this buffoon. He may be very good, but he was underestimating her if he thought that she would just roll over and let him win. A sly grin crossed her face; Zorpox was about to find out just how dangerous an adversary Shego could be.

X X X X X X X X

Kim walked into the kitchen, ready for battle. She had snagged her mother's old apron and a couple of oven mitts from the closet, and had put on one of her mission helmets. She had traded in her normal shoes for a set of heavy duty combat boots, and was even sporting a fire extinguisher across her back. While she would never go out into the public with an outfit like this, she felt it adequately prepared her for her day's mission.

She looked around the kitchen, then down at her feet. Rufus was standing there wearing a personalized hazard suit the tweebs had made for him. The little mole rat was completely covered with a yellow outfit made of a rubbery material; he had a faceplate to stare through, and an oxygen tank on his back so he wouldn't have to breath in any of Kim's cooking. He held a set of tongs in his paws, so he wouldn't have to touch anything she made, either.

Rufus looked up at Kim. She looked uncertain, but even an uncertain Kim was still more confident than most people. The mole rat gave her a thumbs up, knowing it was what Ron would have done if he'd been here. Inwardly, Rufus cringed. If his master hadn't left him with this crazy women, he wouldn't be in a life or death situation like this. Rufus was brave for a mole rat, but dealing with Kim's cooking could make anyone head for the hills.

Kim stood at the doorway and ran through the lessons that Ron had taught her. If she wasn't centered and at peace, this could go very badly, very quickly. Taking a deep breath, the teen slowly crept up to the appliance that had given her the earlier trouble. She had learned that it was called a 'cappuccino maker'. She knew what a coffee maker looked like, but this cappuccino maker had a completely different look and style. Kim traced her hand over the case, this time staying far away from the start button. Actually, when it was off like this, it didn't look so bad.

After making peace with the cappuccino maker, Kim took another look around the kitchen, putting names to things she hadn't known before. Toaster oven, food processor, convection oven, she studied them all carefully so she knew how they worked. Finally her eyes settled on the mixer. Despite her work with Ron, that appliance was probably the one that she feared the most. She had gotten it to work, on occasions, but just as she was getting confident with it, it seemed to turn on her like a wounded animal.

The first time she'd placed it on a special blend-then-whip cycle; she'd turned her back for a moment, and the speed had doubled, sending batter flying everywhere. The second time, she'd accidentally hit the beater release button, and the two beaters had shot off into the bowl, breaking it and making a mess of everything. She knew the mixer had it in for her...she just have to make sure she got it first.

She walked over to the mixer, studying its lines. It was a deceptively simple device, designed to spin a substance to make it smooth, to stir in materials to make a batter. She looked at the corded end of the device, considering how much it looked like a coiled snake, ready to strike any unwary person. It wasn't plugged in, so she felt safe to look at it more closely. She touched the beaters, staying away from the quick release on the top. She knew that it would be important for making a number of dishes.

Kim decided to try something simple. She pulled out a book her mother had, and flipped through it until she found a section on making brownies; she quickly read over the instructions. Some eggs, butter, milk and other things were the easy stuff to find. There were other more difficult things on the list too; Vanilla and Unsweetened Cocoa-they could give her problems. Kim figured they had made a mistake in the book. Vanilla? She wondered if it was shorthand for Vanilla Ice Cream-that was the only vanilla that she knew about.

She shrugged, and pulled the ice cream out of the freezer. It was asking for a very small amount, so she had to figure a way to get just a little of the ice cream. It was too hard to cut with her mother's plastic measuring tool, so she pulled out a butter knife and stabbed it into the desert. She delicately cut a small cross section, then tried to pop the ice cream out. She slid the knife under her cut and pried, and the ice cream shot out of the plastic container and out onto the table. She grimaced, then threw it in the trash.

Kim tried again, this time being more careful, and she was able to cut what she needed. She put it into the half-teaspoon measurement, then went and dropped it into her bowl. Kim looked at the ice cream sitting in the bowl and shrugged. It looked weird, but she was just going by the recipe. After picking the ice cream up with her hands, they were sticky, so she went to the sink to wash her hands.

Ready for the next ingredient, Kim added two eggs, being careful to not drop any eggshell inside. She added sugar, salt, and flour, then pulled out her mother's stick butter. She set it out on the table and stared at it. How would she get that stick to fit inside the quarter cup measurement tool? She frowned in thought, and finally decided to cut it up onto small pieces and stack it inside the container until it reached the mark. She poured that in the mixing bowl, then considered the final item on the list-unsweetened cocoa.

Kim looked high and low for what she needed, but couldn't find it. She finally opened a cabinet that had a small metal container with a label on it. She pulled it out, then studied the label. It said 'Hot Chocolate' and underneath that 'Cocoa mix.' Kim frowned. She'd found the mix, but how to tell if it was sweetened or unsweetened? She debated for a while, then finally dipped her finger in and tasted some of it.

She instantly spit it out. It was awful. She stared at it hard, and figured that it must be unsweetened if it tasted like that. She quickly got the amount that she needed, and poured it in the mixing bowl. Now she had everything that she needed to make her brownies. She took the mixing bowl over to the mixer, but before she began mixing, she gave it a pleading look.

"Alright, I know you hate me, and I don't like you either, but please, no messes this time." The mixer made no movement, so she took that as a good sign. She delicately placed the bowl near the mixer, like one would present an offering...or a sacrifice.

Rufus watched her actions from as far away as he could, keeping silent so she wouldn't get him involved; but as he watched her move to the mixer, he realized he couldn't stay inactive for long. He moved over to the mixer, ready in case a disaster was in the making. He hopped over to the plug end and signaled Kim, and as she nodded, he plugged it in.

Kim began a slow breathing exercise, in...and out. In...and out. As calm as she could be, Kim placed the bowl under the mixer blades, then turned the mixer on. It started without a hitch. Kim grinned down at Rufus, and the little mole rat grinned back in relief. It seemed that he might live to see Ron again. He stayed near the mixer plug, just in case, but Kim had things well in hand.

Kim had just finished mixing the bowl filled with her batter when she heard the front door open and close. She froze, hoping that it wasn't either of her parents. Fortunately it wasn't, although it was another type of trouble. The twins slipped in through the door, carrying a number of supplies, and walked into the kitchen, planning to get a snack. When they saw Kim, they froze.

"What are you doing?" Tim looked around the kitchen.

"Mom said if she ever caught you in the kitchen again..." Jim held his rocket parts like a shield

"...she'd take away all your privileges for a year." Both boys slowly began backing out of the kitchen.

"You're going to be in so much trouble..."

"...when we tell mom and dad." They turned and got ready to dash up to their room.

"I wouldn't do that, tweebs..." Kim's voice was low. "We wouldn't want them to learn who sabotaged the cafeteria computer menu, would we?"

Jim's eyes widened. "You can't pin that on us..."

"...If you could, you're have told mom and dad already."

Kim grinned at them. "You know, really good hackers don't put their real names in a 'by line' in part of their code."

Tim turned and hit Jim in the arm. "I told you not to put our names in that."

Jim shrugged back. "How else will we get people to recognize us?"

Tim frowned-it made sense. He turned to Kim. "Alright sis..."

"...you win..."

"...we'll leave you alone..."

"...if you keep our secret." The tweebs left quickly, so they could deny any knowledge of Kim's cooking.

The teen growled at being interrupted by the twins, but quickly got her mind back on her 'mission.' She poured the batter into a container, then put it into the oven. She made sure to get the right time and temperature, then all she had left to do was wait.

Kim hated waiting.

X X X X X X X X

Drakken looked at Zorpox-he had been a little tipsy after Shego's attack, but now he seemed to be back on his feet. He thought about what had just been said-Shego, his only supporter, his only true ally, had been playing him-from the start. She was only in it for the money, she didn't care if he took over the world or if he failed-as long as she got her money. He had never seen her act like that...then again...

"Zorpox, I told you not to anger Shego-and you did." Drakken expected him to smirk, to gloat, but instead he looked saddened.

"Yes, I know. I was hoping it wasn't true, that I was reading into things wrong, but after I got all that evidence, I couldn't very well let her continue to siphon your funds. I didn't want her to make this plan fail, too." He sighed, deeply.

"Do...do we need to lock her up?" If she was untrustworthy, he didn't want her running freely...but he didn't know how he would be able to catch her-she was more dangerous than all his henchmen combined. He shuddered, thinking of the damage she could cause.

"No, no..." Zorpox mused for a second. "No, we just need to keep an eye on her. She thinks that she's smart, that she's just as good as us, Drakken, but we know better. Shego is the muscle, the action, while we're the thought. She's predictable, so as long as we watch her, we have nothing to worry about."

Inwardly, Zorpox grinned; the seeds of doubt had been planted. Now all he had to do was let the doubt grow, let the mad doctor really consider Shego and her actions of the past. Yes, in a few days time, the caped villain knew it would be time to pressure her again, and with a little luck and planning, she would snap-removing the only remaining obstacle to his plan.

* * *

_**A/N **Some might say that Kim dealt with all her cooking issues in the Tutor episode, but I always figured that she only did a lot of the basics in her home ec class. I also figure her success only had to do with Ron standing there with her, coaching and helping her through the class. Remove Ron from the equation, and suddenly Kim is back to her normal level when it comes to cooking. Or, in other words, disaster is sure to come._


	6. Chef Girl

**_A/N _**_With this chapter, this story is now my longest to date; and there's still quite a bit to go._

_And a thank you out to Eddy13, who helped prep these chapters.  
_

* * *

**Chapter 6: Chef Girl**

_(Saturday Noon)_

Buzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

Finally, it was done. Kim quickly opened the oven, then pulled out her brownies. They looked okay, but the real test would be tasting them. She decided to give them a chance to cool, so she went back to the closet to take care of her 'mission outfit.' She already cleaned the kitchen, and after putting things away, she pulled a knife out to cut her brownies. She was just slicing into them when her Kimmunicator went off.

She pulled it out, then lifted the communication device up and flipped it on. Wade appeared.

"Hi, just calling to...Kim, are you in the kitchen?"

Kim gave him a dark look that dared him to comment. "Yes."

"Um..." There was a long pause as he gathered his thoughts. "I haven't been able to find anything on the golf club yet-and the villains all seem to be very secretive on what their working on-it'll take a little more time to find out what they're doing." Another long pause. "Have you been cooking?"

Kim bit off each word. "Yes, Wade, I have been cooking."

He really hated to ask, but he just had to. "Do I need to call the fire department?"

Kim cut the call off in disgust. She saved the world practically daily. People trusted her with their lives-and all Wade could ask was if she needed the fire department. Kim turned to her brownies and finished cutting them. They seemed to stick to the pan a little, but she was still able to pop a large piece loose, then placed it in her mouth. She watched as Rufus stood expectantly.

Her eyes widened. Kim rushed over to the trash and spit it out. She didn't even know how to describe it-it tasted way too sweet, but it also seemed to be missing something. All in all, it tasted nothing like the brownies her mother had made, and she'd used the exact same recipe-that could only mean that she'd done something wrong. She looked at Rufus for help, but he just shrugged. He hadn't been paying that much attention, since he was across the room.

The red head scooped the brownies off into the trash, then sat down with her head down on the table. There was no way she could ever learn to cook. She was terrible at this. Even when she followed the instructions, even when she did everything right, things went wrong. Wade was right to doubt her. She...Kim felt a light touch on her head, so she looked up.

Rufus was looking down at her, no longer wearing his special suit. He grinned at her. "Again."

The teen shook her head. "No, Rufus, I won't do it again-obviously I can't cook, and I'll never learn. I should just give up now."

Rufus frowned, then scampered up stairs to her room. Kim watched him go, confused. What was he doing? He returned shortly, this time carrying something. He hopped back on the kitchen table and placed one of her school books on the table-a math book. Rufus smiled widely, and gave her a thumbs up. "Study!"

Kim's looked at him, shocked. It was a great idea-she wouldn't try and take a test after just a few hours studying the material-she'd practice in the weeks before the test so that she knew all that she could about the subject-and she thought that she'd be able to just learn to cook in a few hours? Rufus was right; she needed to study. It was getting late in the afternoon, but Kim figure that if she hurried, she could get to the Middleton Library before it closed for the day.

X X X X X X X X

Drakken went back to his command center and pulled up his cameras. He watched Shego for a while, until she went into her room, then went through his cameras looking for Zorpox. He had decided that despite the headband, Zorpox needed watching. The caped villain was in one of Drakken's auxiliary labs, working on something. The villain was suspicious, so he tried to zoom in and see what Kim's sidekick was doing, but his back was to the camera, working on something in front of him. Drakken figured he would just have to go down there and see what he was doing.

The blue doctor made his way down the corridors, his feet clapping loudly in the empty hallway. This auxiliary lab was in the far corner of the lair, back off a couple of hundred feet from his main lab. He had designed it to have everything his main lab had, but be situated behind a fifty-foot-wide three-foot-thick reinforced steel door, followed by a smaller normal sized door that could be hermetically sealed. Drakken kept this lab separate and secret, because he wanted to use it to create things that could be dangerous or chemically toxic-but he'd never actually used it.

When he had first created it, he'd dreamed of using it to create lots of new and exotic things, but after realizing his normal lab served just as well, he'd abandoned it. In fact, the fifty foot door was stuck open, rusted on its hinges, and the second door was left ajar. He crept up slowly, and could hear Zorpox chuckling inside. He hesitated outside, then gathered his courage and pushed the door open.

He walked in, looking toward where Zorpox had been working. He wasn't there. Without thinking, Drakken dashed forward, then looked around for the caped villain. He turned around, and spotted him-his head an inch from Drakken's. The mad doctor pulled back, and fell against the table behind him. Zorpox stepped back, and the other villain got back on his feet.

"Don't do that again!"

Zorpox smirked. "_You _were the one spying on _me_, Dr Drakken." His smile disappeared. "I don't like being spied on." His voice dropped, and Drakken had to strain to hear it. "Do it again, and you'll regret it."

Drakken cowered away, and was seriously considering calling Shego for help. He was just starting to think about running and screaming like a scared schoolgirl when Zorpox pulled away, walking toward the door. He paused at the entrance, looking over his shoulder. "Coming?"

The villain nodded, then followed Zorpox out into the hall. The caped villain motioned for Drakken to walk beside him, then started talking. "Okay, I assume you're keeping an eye on Shego?" Drakken nodded-he had a few henchmen put in place to keep discreet surveillance on Shego...and Zorpox. "Good, then we need to deal with our next problem...you have no money. Now I can think of a certain villainous pair that have lots of money, and might be willing to share." Zorpox laughed loudly.

X X X X

One hour later, Zorpox was setting Drakken's hovercraft down on the Seniors' island. Drakken had wanted to pilot the craft there, but the teen agreed with Shego-never let Drakken drive. He set a lock on the hover car, then hopped out, Drakken right behind him. The caped villain just stood outside the Seniors' house, looking at all its features. Concrete and steel walls, reinforced glass windows, sliding doors that go 'whoosh,' the Seniors' home really had it all.

Zorpox walked over to the front door, and knocked. Drakken looked at him in shock. "What are you doing? I thought we were stealing the money. Now they'll see us and know we're coming."

The caped villain smirked. "No they won't." He tapped his belt. "I'm jamming all their cameras-they can't see anything." He stepped to the side of the door, leaving Drakken standing in front of it. Just as soon as he did, the door whooshed open, and the Seniors stepped through.

Senior was surprised. "Dr Drakken? To what do we owe the honor of this visit?"

Junior piped up. "And where is your pretty sidekick?"

Drakken stood, shocked, his mouth hanging open. What was Zorpox doing-was he going to attack them? Zorpox stepped over in the doorway, then smiled at Drakken. 'Improvise' he mouthed, then slipped through the doorway before it slid closed.

"Um...um?" Drakken didn't have a clue what to say, so he looked around in confusion. Finally he just blurted out the first thing that came to mind. "Did you get the invitation?"

Senior looked at him. "Invitation? Junior, did you see an invitation in the mail today?"

His son just shrugged. "I do not know, father, I did not check. I have not checked the mail since that prissy lady wrote that article about my singing."

"Well, go do so now." He turned back to Dr Drakken. "Now, let us go inside and you can tell me about this invitation." He led the doctor into his study, and over to sit at one of his tables. "Would you like some refreshments?"

Drakken shook his head, then changed his mind. "Oh, do you have any Cocoa Moo?"

Senior tapped a button next to him and spoke over the intercom. "Junior, bring out some Cocoa Moo, as well." He clicked it off, and faced Drakken. "So, tell me about this invitation."

Drakken thought quickly. "Yes, I sent the invitation out almost a week ago and hoped it had arrived-" Junior arrived with the mail, and after sorting through it, the Seniors couldn't find the nonexistent letter.

Senior turned to Drakken. "I am sorry, it appears to have gotten lost. Now, what were you inviting us for?"

Drakken nodded and tried to adopt the same tone. "Um, you see, Shego and I go to Karaoke night on Fridays, but as of the last few weeks, less and less people have been singing. I know that Junior likes to sing and was wondering if he wants to come to karaoke night this Friday?"

"Oh, Papi, please, can I?" Junior was practically jumping up and down with glee.

"Wait, son, we must check our calendar." He walked over to his desk, and looked at the calendar then flipped it to check the next few weeks as well. He turned and sat back across from Drakken. "I am sorry, Dr Drakken, but we must decline. My son is taking lessons in fencing, and I do not want him to miss those. Perhaps in another month or two, our schedules will coincide."

Drakken was relieved, but he didn't let it show. "Oh, well that's too bad. I'll just have to see who else I can find." He started to stand. "Thank you for your time-"

"No, wait, Dr Drakken, you do not have to leave so quickly. I know that you have been a villain longer than we have, and I wish to hear about some of your earlier villainous plans."

Drakken slowly sat. "Well, I've always been one to brag about myself. What do you want to know?"

"I am sure you have many tales of plans that would have taken over the world, but I would most especially like to hear about your first meeting with our common nemesis, Kim Possible."

X X X X X X X X

Fortunately for Kim, the library wasn't that far from her house, and in a matter of minutes she was there. Before she had left, Kim had decided to put on a disguise, since it was possible that someone from school would be there and might recognize her. The teen's cooking skills, or lack thereof, were well known throughout the school, and if it got around that Kim was trying to learn how to cook-well, best not to think about it.

Kim stopped just outside the library and looked up-and up. The building was five stories, filled to the brim with everything from first edition copies of classic books to the newest sci-fi epic. In all honesty, Kim hadn't gone in very often, instead using the school library when she needed a book to read. The only times she really went in was to research something for a mission if Wade was busy-she could usually find anything and everything she needed.

She pushed through the main double doors, then looked around the room. The first floor was a wide open plaza-like area. There was a mid-sized fountain in the center, with numerous chairs spread out to allow people to read in comfort. Kim studied the brightly lit area for any schoolmates, but lucky for her there was no one she recognized. As Kim made her way to the main desk, she couldn't help smile. While the school library had the evil Mrs Hatcher for a librarian, the public library had some of the nicest and brightest people at their disposal. Her favorite of all of them was Mrs Mahoney.

She thought back to that day; it had been one of Kim's first adventures helping someone, and one of the more memorable. It had dealt with the simplest thing, a cat stuck in a tree, but soon escalated into one of the craziest days of her life. First the cat, then Ron, a dog, a bus, four pigeons, two pot holes, and one bowl of milk had nearly stopped her from helping anyone ever again.

Mrs Mahoney was busy typing in some sort of code off the spines of a stack of books when Kim walked up. It took almost a minute before she realized someone was standing there, and another two minutes to realize it was Kim. "Kim Possible? How are you dear-I almost didn't recognize you."

"Shhh." Kim looked around to see if anyone had heard her name. "I don't want anyone to know I'm here."

"Oh, right." Mrs Mahoney immediately lowered her voice. She was used to the peculiar things that Kim would do, so it only seemed natural to talk quietly. "What do you need, Kim?"

Kim bit her bottom lip. "I, um, want to check out a couple of cooking books."

"Cooking books?" She asked, surprised, then shrugged. It wasn't the weirdest thing she'd been asked. "Um, okay, let me see what we got, dear." She frowned, typing in the request, then looked up. "I'm sure you want something like four-star recipes or fancy cuisine, right?"

Kim shook her head and wouldn't make eye contact. She spoke in a whisper. "Maybe...something a little more basic."

"Having trouble?" The librarian asked with a knowing smile. She pulled up some more results. "So, Kimberly, do you want something in the 'Cooking for Dummies series'?"

Kim winced, but nodded. She really hated the title, but knew that there was nothing better than one of those books for explaining everything. Mrs Mahoney placed her finger on the screen, then traced down it. "Oh, I'm sorry, it looks like they've been checked out-same for the Idiots series...oh, wait, here's something. It's perfect. C'mon." She got up and walked around the desk, then upstairs. Kim followed with trepidation.

The librarian wove in and out of shelves, moving up and down isles until she found the area she wanted. She pulled the book out and held it up for Kim. "Cooking For People Who Think They Can Do Anything." She read off the title. "From what I've hear, this series is new, and it sounds perfect for you." She passed Kim the book, then walked back to her desk and checked the book out. Five minutes later, Kim slipped out the doors, the less than proud borrower of the worst book she'd ever heard of.

X X X X X X X X

After Zorpox slipped inside the doors, he quickly made his way inside to a smaller room he had spotted the last time Kim and Ron were in the Seniors' lair. He went over to the door and noticed that it seemed to have a lock on the outside. He stopped and frowned. He hadn't brought a lock picker because it wouldn't work with his camera jammer. That left old fashioned methods-guessing the passcode.

Fortunately, he always kept himself prepared. He pulled out a small container with powder and blew it against the keypad. He could see six fingerprints, and as he studied the numbers, he thought hard. Finally it came to him and he grinned. The password was the birth date of Nicky-Nick, one of the O-boyz. It was really too easy. Zorpox quickly slipped inside the room, then spotted a large computer-perfect. He dropped in the seat and started pulling up what he'd need.

First and foremost, he needed money. Zorpox took all their money and invested it in numerous stocks, and after the stocks had risen a couple percent, he pulled the money back out and put it back in their account. He transferred the money he had just earned into a number of special accounts he had hidden around the world, and transferred five percent of that back into Drakken's account. That gave the doctor just over two hundred million dollars to work with, plenty to keep him busy.

Zorpox closed up the files he had just been working on, then turned to his second objective. He pulled up all the files he could find on the Seniors' lair, all the design specs, and then pulled a cable out from his belt. He plugged it into the computer and downloaded everything, then used the belt's hardware to destroy any evidence that he had tampered with the computer. With any luck, the brief flux of money would look like nothing more than a computer glitch. He closed everything down, exited the secret room, then went out the main doors to wait in the hovercraft.

Finally, nearly fifteen minutes later, Drakken came out and climbed in the hovercraft. The blue doctor glared at his partner. "Don't you ever do something like that to me again-I had no idea you were going to leave me alone like that."

Zorpox slapped him on the back, then turned and lifted the hovercraft off. "Oh come on, you did fine-they didn't throw you in a cell, did they? Everything worked perfectly."

"So...you got the money."

The caped villain reached over and punched up Drakken's accounts. The mad doctor's eyes widened. He stuttered. "Tuh-tuh...two hundred and four million dollars!"

Zorpox laughed. "Just look at all those zeros, Drakken. Oh, and it's closer to two hundred and five million dollars. I think that's what we need to get your plan back on track."

"I can't believe we just stole over two hundred million dollars from the Seniors. Won't they come after it?"

Zorpox waved off his worries. It's a drop in the bucket to them-they have over a hundred billion dollars. Besides, I didn't steal anything from them."

Drakken frowned. "What? Then where did you get this money?"

"I earned it-I bought and sold some stocks, and made plenty-and they didn't lose a penny. You know, if you were to set half of that money aside and put it in an account, you could make enough to retire to a very nice island-or in your case, you could create some very expensive take over the world plans."

He wasn't even listening. "With this money, I'll finally be able to bring Kim Possible to her knees." He laughed gleefully.

Zorpox just sighed.

X X X X X X X X

When Kim got home from the library, she was surprised to see her mother's car sitting outside the garage. She figured the tweebs had performed some sort of experiment, and blocked the garage up. She quietly slipped in the front door, hoping she could make it upstairs, but her mother was in the kitchen making dinner.

"Hello, Kim, where have you been?" Her mother smiled warmly, wondering if her daughter had been saving the world again.

"Um, just out getting something..." Ann's early warning radar went off. Something was wrong.

"Getting what?" She watched her daughter carefully.

"A..." The teen looked down, and made a small motion with her hand. "... book from the library. You know, studying and all that." She half raised the book up, but Ann couldn't read the title. The teen quickly raced upstairs.

Ann gave a slight smile. She knew her daughter was ultra-competitive, but she also hated to ask for help. Whatever the subject her daughter was having trouble with, Ann knew that Kim would eventually figure it out-she always did; and if the teen needed help from her parents, they were always available, too.

When Kim got up to her room, she quickly flopped down on the bed, hiding the book under her body. That had been a close one-she so didn't want to explain to her mother her renewed interest in cooking. It had been bad enough when Ann had flat out told her daughter she couldn't teach her; if she was going to learn how to cook, she needed to do it on her own. Kim got up and slipped the book between her mattresses-she didn't want her mom to find it.

A few minutes later Kim got called down for supper, and quickly made her way downstairs. Her father was gone, probably still working on the Hephaestus project, so it was unlikely he'd be home for dinner. The tweebs quickly came in and got their food, then went back into the living room, saying they were going to watch a show on early rocketry. That left Kim and Ann alone.

There was an uncomfortable silence; Ann wanted to ask about the book her daughter had checked out, and Kim was dreading the question. She knew she wouldn't lie to her mother, not after what had happened that Halloween; of course, that didn't mean she'd blurt out the title, either. She sat, tight lipped, and looked at her mother.

Ann stared back. It was almost like Kim was daring her to ask the question, but at the same time hoping she wouldn't. Finally the adult broke the uncomfortable silence. "So, Kimmie, how's your schoolwork going?"

Kim relaxed; this was safe territory. "Everything's great, although I seem to be getting busier; you know, with the prom coming up." Kim frowned as she realized that she didn't have a date yet. She mentally shrugged, then continued. "Mr Barkin has been keeping us busy with English and some other classes, but I'm keeping up." She smiled slightly. "So is Ron. He's still got his issues with Mr Barkin, but they seem to be getting along better now." Her smile turned wistful; she wondered if Ron was having fun.

Her mother caught the look and knew what it meant. "You miss Ron, don't you, dear?"

The teen nodded. "Yeah, I never realize how much we do together until he's gone. We're usually doing something-nothing, really-but when he's gone..." She shook her head. "Actually, it's good for him, right? I mean, he went on that exchange to Yamunachi in Japan, it's a learning experience. I don't know, I'm just feeling..."

"...a little jealous?" Her mom asked with a grin. Kim made a face. "It's only natural, dear. You're feeling left out because this is twice that Ron had gotten a chance to go somewhere because of his skills."

Kim gave her mom a double take. Did she know about the ninjas?

Ann continued. "He went to that school in Japan because he's so friendly and outgoing, and now he's gone to that cooking expo." Kim gave a quiet sigh of relief. "Just remember that Ron can be better at some things than you are dear-that doesn't make you any less, and it probably does wonders for his self-esteem. I think-" There was a ringing sound from the living room. Ann got up and answered the phone, listened, then quickly hung up.

"Sorry, Kimmie, but I have to go-emergency at the hospital. We can talk more tomorrow." Her daughter nodded. "I don't know when I'll be back, so make sure the twins get in bed if I'm not home." She leaned over and hugged Kim, then grabbed her bag and dashed outside. Kim watched her go, relieved-her cooking secret was safe. She finished eating, then went into the living room. The tweebs had already finished their food, and were watching the end of their show.

Kim sat, bored, and watched as the TV special continued.

"Early rockets were very dangerous, often built without all of the safety requirements necessary today. Many of these early transports became missiles, instead." A number of scenes rolled of rockets toppling over or shooting up, only to explode minutes into their mission. More footage told how rockets had adapted from the old style into new. Finally the program focused on modern-day rocketry.

"Despite nearly five decades of rocket work, we still have a long way to go before we even land a person on another planet, much less travel outside our solar system. Over the past fifty years, nearly 30,000 satellites have been place into orbit; putting a man-made object in space takes a lot of effort; from loading it up, to creating the rocket and preparing it, it could months or years to place even one satellite-"

Kim rolled her eyes. While this would be interesting to the tweebs or her father, she didn't really care. She got up from the couch and told the twins to be in bed by nine, then went upstairs to her room. She pulled out her homework and worked on it for a few hours, then when nine o'clock rolled around she checked that the tweebs had gone to bed. They hadn't, so she spent nearly twenty minutes taking care of her irresponsible brothers. Finally she made it back to her room, and decided to call it a night; she could get more work done tomorrow.

X X X X X X X X

By the time they got back to the lab, it was getting late, so Zorpox excused himself to go get some rest. Drakken still wasn't paying attention, he'd spent the entire time back laughing and giggling crazily. The caped villain let himself out; no sooner had he left than a certain green villainess arrived in the room. Shego moved up behind her employer, noting his actions; his laughing made her uncomfortable, and rather suspicious-he usually acted like this when he was going to do something he really shouldn't.

"Yo, Dr D." She spoke loudly, and the mad doctor jumped. He spun, then looked her up and down, as if analyzing her frame. Finally he seemed to focus on her.

"Yes, Shego, do you need something?"

There was a suspicious glint in his eyes, and Shego again wondered whether Zorpox was lying when he had spoken to her earlier; regardless, she wasn't quite as comfortable around her boss now as she had been just a few days before. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she looked past him, noticing the numbers on the computer screen. "So, how did things work out?"

Drakken turned, and only now seemed to realize that the amount of money they had stolen was on the screen. He quickly reached over and shut things down, then turned to her. "Um...pretty well. We got some money to work with." He looked at her suspiciously. "I hope you're not expecting a raise."

She responded vehemently, to both of their surprises. "No! I'll never accept money that comes from Zorpox-stolen, bartered, or earned outright." Drakken tilted his head sideways, and she realized that for once, that had been the right answer. By refusing Zorpox's funds, she had made Drakken wonder if perhaps she didn't care only about the money. It was a short uncertainty, however, and soon Drakken had dismissed it; it wasn't about the money, but rather about her hatred of Zorpox.

"Fine-I wasn't going to give you a raise anyway." Shego narrowed her eyes at that pronouncement, but knew that wasn't why she had come here in the first place.

She looked over on the counter top and noticed his table was conspicuously empty. "So, have you two done anything else on the plan?"

The blue doctor shrugged and wouldn't meet her eyes. "No, not yet-I went about ordering some of the supplies we need; Zorpox told me he'd print off the blueprints tonight and we'll get started on the satellites tomorrow. I really didn't want to work anymore tonight after talking with the Seniors-I get so nervous when I'm lying like that."

Shego looked at him quizically. "Lying? What are you talking about? I thought you two just went in and stole the money."

Drakken looked at her, then explained what they had done; how they had been separated, and the blue doctor had been left alone to try and keep the Senior's busy what Zorpox went about securing the money. As he told the story, Shego's eyes narrowed.

"Wait, you two were separated?" She cocked her head sideways; this meant that he could have done a number of things that neither of the villains knew about-and she sure didn't trust the villain's headband to keep Zorpox in line-she'd seen way too many of Drakken's plans self implode because he'd messed up in some way. She wondered what, exactly, he could have been working on.

Oblivious to her thoughts, her employer continued. "Yeah, I distracted the Seniors while he was busy getting the money. It's not really all that different than what happened with Killigan, too."

Shego's eyes widened. "He's gotten away from you before?"

Drakken nodded. "Yeah, at Killigan's lair; after he attacked us when he found us in his vault, he suggest that we wreck his hideout to make it look like Monkey Fist had attacked."

The green villainess considered this new bit of information. Something...something else was going on. Why would he wreck another villain's hideout-Zorpox did not seem like the type for revenge or vandalism. He much preferred plans...meaning that he probably used the destruction as a way to steal something else from Killigan-and since the hideout would be a mess, it might take Killigan forever to realize what was missing. In her mind, at least, she now had some proof that the caped villain was up to no good.

"Listen, Dr D, let me know anytime that you two go out, okay?" She motioned with her hand. "I might like to get out of the lair some too." At best she could stick with the caped villain anytime he left their lair; at worst, she would be able to talk to Drakken after they got back.

Surprised, Drakken nodded. "Sure, I'll let you know." With a nod, Shego left to contemplate Zorpox and his plan.

Drakken, finally alone, pulled up his account again. He had some things he wanted to buy...some things not on Zorpox's list...

X X X X

After leaving Drakken along, the caped villain made his way through the lair, finally finding himself outside his door. Zorpox stepped into his room, then hooked his belt up to a wall socket and over rode the camera in his room-to anyone watching, it would look like he was sleeping.

He went and sat at the single computer in his room, and after partitioning off a secure section of Drakken's system, he plugged his belt into it. Instantly a number of diagrams appeared on the screen. Zorpox watched as the Mega Weather Generator and Sonic Annihilator appeared, and he created a file location for superweapons. He closed the file, then looked at some of the other things he had. He brought up the Senior's architectural plans, and spent nearly three hours designing a number of lairs-including a hardened command base, a large tower, an underwater base, an underground space center, a subterranean manufacturing plant, and more. He filed that away under lairs, then closed those files.

When Zorpox had been working with Shego against Drakken and Kim, he'd downloaded everything in Drakken's computer, including diagrams on all his old plans, and records on his lairs and their locations. He filed those away for later analysis, then created a file for his current plan. He numbered it randomly, fifteen, then typed it up. When he was finished, he closed it, then reached into his pocket for the item he'd stolen from Duff Killigan-the recipe for his dear old Gram's Haggis. He shuddered as he read over it, but knew it was perfect. He scanned it into the computer, then tossed the paper into the nearby trash can. Now he had the beginning of his plan, but he still needed a few more items. It was going to be a lot of work to juggle this plan, and keep Drakken oblivious to it all.

Then again, Drakken was always oblivious.

The real trick would be to keep track of Shego. She could be very devious when she needed to be; she was probably the smartest villain out there. It was actually rather deceptive-the villainess chose to be a sidekick, at best a partner, when she could be so much more. He thought back to her crime spree with Junior-the two had gone out to steal Granny's secret recipe for cookies-and had almost succeeded-she had trained Junior very well. If she could get two or three successful villains to work with her, she could be a real force to be reckoned with. Fortunately, she didn't do that, for whatever reason, so Zorpox was safe from that headache.

The problem was that she knew. Knew that he was playing Drakken, that this was all a plot to further his own ends. It really didn't matter unless she got proof, which the villain wasn't going to give her. He needed to be careful, but if he could keep Wade oblivious to his actions, he could keep her unaware, also-it would just take a little adjustments, maybe some more time on other projects to keep them secret. Not too much of a bother.

After that, Zorpox made his final file for the night. He created a page that went through his entire fake scheme, step by step, to give to Drakken. It listed all the items he would need, as well as how to implement the plan, and where to get the items. He would give it to Drakken the next day, and tell him to follow it, and while the mad doctor was busy, Zorpox would be working behind the scenes, creating his best plan ever...and by the end, Kimberly Ann would be his. He laughed loudly into the night.

X X X X

Shego couldn't stand it-Zorpox's laughter was enough to drive her up the wall. Their two rooms were practically adjacent-while they were down different hallways, one of their walls were shared; and even with the soundproofing she had done, she could still hear the occasional laugh from the villain. She wasn't even sure that what she was hearing wasn't just in her head-the walls should have been plenty thick to stop any sounds.

After speaking with Drakken, Shego had wandered around for an hour or so before finally making her way back to her room. She kept running things through in her head, but knew that she didn't quite have all the pieces of the puzzle yet-and fortunately, that probably meant that her caped foe didn't have all the pieces yet, either, or else he would have already attacked them. No, he was biding him time, making himself appear trustworthy until he was ready to attack.

She wouldn't give him the chance; the villainess hadn't become one of the most dangerous criminals in the world by trusting people. Sure, she gave some measure of trust to some people-she trusted Drakken to pay her, and to follow her contract-but that was really more for the doctor's benefit than hers. No, there was a very small list of people Shego trusted implicitly-and she doubted that Zorpox would ever be on that list.

* * *

_**A/N** First, don't tell me stocks don't work this way. This is Disney we're talking about, everything's magic, remember?_

_Second, I have to give props to brindani, who correctly surmised that Zorpox stole Killigan's Haggis recipe. What he plans to do with it, of course, is still a mystery; but you can be sure it won't be good. _

_And, it seems like Shego is finally on the rebound, and ready to start fighting back against the villain-but will it be too little, too late?_


	7. Successes and Failures

_**A/N **Another single day divided into two chapters. You'll see why in a bit._

_Thanks go out to Eddy13 for beta reading._

* * *

**Chapter 7: Successes and Failures**

_(Sunday Morning-Week 2)_

The next morning, Zorpox gave his plan to Drakken, and the blue doctor took them in hand, looked them over, then had his henchmen gather. He had ordered most of the supplies he needed overnight, and they had arrived that morning-so Drakken had his men start their work putting the satellites together. The caped villain started to excuse himself, content to let Drakken work, but the villain wouldn't let Zorpox leave yet.

Instead, Drakken had him explain the working of the satellite, and work with the henchmen where he could see him. Zorpox was careful to do just enough work to keep the doctor happy, but not enough to get everything done too quickly. By eleven, they'd only created two satellites, and they weren't even finished yet-they didn't have the rocket system needed to launch it, or the computer and operating systems needed to run them. They would need hundreds of the satellites, and only a couple had been built.

Drakken gave them a chance to break for lunch, and Zorpox made his way to the cafeteria. It was technically a little early to be eating, but the mad doctor just ate whenever he felt hungry, so everyone else took their breaks whenever their boss wasn't working. Zorpox went down to the cafeteria and into the kitchen, then looked around. He finally spotted Drakken's refrigerator, a dangerous looking contraption, and started digging around for food when he heard a noise behind him. He turned, and spotted four henchmen standing there, watching him. He gave them a malevolent grin, hoping they would leave, but after dealing with Shego daily, they were not easily cowed. Zorpox actually didn't have anything against them, he just wanted to be left alone.

"What do you want?" Despite being a villain-and a good one at that-Zorpox had treated them with more respect than anyone else they had worked for. Most of the henchmen were used to Shego's crazy mood swings and Drakken's insults, and some had even worked for other villains like Dementor; yet there was just something about Zorpox they liked-they didn't fear him like they did Shego and Drakken. Even still, he was a villain.

One of the men, obviously the spokesman for the group, finally worked up the courage to talk. "We're hungry."

Zorpox stared back. "Then get something to eat."

The speaker, losing his nerve, shuffled his feet and mumbled something. Zorpox gave him a hard glare and told him to repeat what he just said.

"The cook, Ms. Stu is out today; she left some food in the refrigerator, but we don't want to eat it." He paused. "She's an awful cook-it reminds me of the food I used to eat in school. I heard Shego say that you were a good cook...so maybe..."

At first, he was just going to tell the men to get lost, but then he realized that if he did this, he'd have the gratitude of Drakken's entire staff. Also, a smaller part of him couldn't stomach the though of these men suffering through a meal as bad as what the cafeteria lady made. He opened the door of the refrigerator and pulled out the disgusting glop that was the henchmen's meal. He pulled the lid off the container, and watched as the men backed away in fear. He got a very small amount out, and gave it a taste-it was disgusting.

"Alright, fine." A cheer went up, and Zorpox couldn't help but smile-an army lives on its stomach, after all.

X X X X X X X X

Kim rolled out of bed Sunday morning, and got ready for her day. She got dressed, then went to church with her family. After church, her mother had to go back into the hospital, and her dad had more work he wanted to do on the Hephaestus project. They quickly left for their respective jobs, leaving Kim home with the twins. The tweebs immediately excused themselves to do rocket tests in the back yard. That gave Kim a chance to practice her cooking.

She made her way upstairs to grab her book, then went back down to the kitchen, ready for some very in-depth studying. Rufus was there with her, the perfect little assistant. He knew quite a bit about cooking himself, so he was able to coach her some; unfortunately, the speech barrier didn't help things out. Kim spent nearly twenty minutes figuring out that 'nilla' actually meant Vanilla, one of the things that she'd messed up in her earlier attempt.

It turns out that there actually _was_ a substance called vanilla, and while it wasn't essential to cooking, it was used quite a bit to give food the right taste. Kim went digging through her mom's cabinets again, finally finding the vanilla. She had decided to try the same recipe she had used earlier, this time following the instructions carefully, and using the other cooking book for help; it had already paid off, telling her about the vanilla.

She already knew not to leave the eggshells in the batter from home ec-Barkin had not been very pleased to get a mouthful of _that_. She added the butter, then other things she needed, following the instructions exactly. When she got to the unsweetened cocoa, she went back to her cooking book, and learned that the cocoa in a hot chocolate mix was actually sweetened; she hunted around the kitchen again before finding what she needed.

Finally it was all there, and Kim was ready to mix it using the mixer. She took the bowl over to the appliance, and gave it a dark look, knowing that if anything went wrong this time, it would be because of that hated mixer. She could always try to mix it herself, by hand, but even that seemed to be beyond the great Kim Possible. Last time she'd tried it, she'd started a four-alarm food fight in the cafeteria. It had not been pretty.

No, as much as she hated, and even feared the mixer, it was her only choice. She had Rufus get in position, ready to pull the plug, then flipped the mixer on. It started easily, and Kim was able to mix her batter very quickly. In fact, she actually had fun, watching the substances in the bowl mix and join together into a perfect blend. When she was finished, she placed it in a pan, slid it in the oven, and began baking it.

When it was ready, she pulled it out, let it cool some, then cut a piece up for her and Rufus. She set the mole rat's piece on a small napkin, then grabbed hers. She waited for Rufus to try it, but the mole rat was smarter than he looked. He gave Kim a challenging stare, daring her to eat it first. With a shrug, and slight wince, she placed it in her mouth.

It was good.

It was _very_ good.

Kim grinned. She stuffed the rest in her mouth and ate it, glorying in the wonderful taste. She did it! She could cook! Rufus, surprised, nibbled off a small part of his brownie, and his eyes lit up. He immediately dug in, then looked up at Kim.

"More. More!" He gave her a double thumbs up.

"Alright, Rufus." She grabbed the pan, and began to take it over to the kitchen table. Unfortunately, her elbow snagged the mixer, and it fell off onto the floor; she tried to move around it, but the power cable hooked her foot. Kim lost her balance, and instantly prepared herself for the fall...by dropping the pan.

Kim's perfect batch of brownies fell on the floor, upside down, ruined. She gasped at seeing her food ruined, but quickly put things into perspective. She could cook now, so it didn't matter. She could just whip up another batch of the food, dropping it was just a fluke. She looked over at Rufus, who had a very sad look on his little face. Kim offered him the food on the floor.

He wouldn't eat it-for a naked mole rat, Rufus could be pretty picky sometimes.

X X X X X X X X

Zorpox spent nearly three and a half hours feeding all the henchmen. Drakken didn't employ that many men, but boy did they have appetites-especially for Zorpox's four-star cuisine. Some came back for thirds and more, and two of the henchmen had even had a contest to see who could eat the most jumbo shrimp. After it was over, they all graciously stepped in to help clean up, getting the dishes washed in no time.

After making sure everything was clean and put away (a tidy lab is a constructive lab, after all), Zorpox made his way back to Drakken's lab, only to hear loud banging noises from inside. He paused at the entrance, wondering what was going on. With only one way to find out, Zorpox stepped through the sliding door. He was surprised by what he saw.

The room was lit up brightly, so Zorpox could see that there were hundreds of parts on the ground, spread out everywhere, and Drakken was standing in the middle of it. Surprisingly, he was standing next to two newly finished satellites, and hunched over a third, putting it together and whistling to himself. Zorpox looked at the two satellites, and realized that Drakken had done in a couple of hours what it had taken the henchmen half a day to do. These satellites still needed the computer and rockets like the other two, but even still, it was an amazing accomplishment.

"Drakken, how long have you been working?"

If Zorpox's sudden entrance surprised the doctor, he didn't show it. "Just a few hours-I actually got the laser output and transceiver array confused, and had to go back and rebuild them." He finally turned. "I don't need you any more, Zorpox, I did this in less than half the time it took you and the henchmen. I've got your plan, so why should I keep you around?"

Zorpox just smirked. "And what makes this any different from one of your other plans..." He waited as Drakken thought, then he laughed. "Nothing-exactly. That means that Kimberly Ann is just as likely to beat you, even with the entire thing planned out. What if something unexpected comes up? No, you still need me, even if you won't admit it." He seemed to stop and think. "You know what though? You're right-you don't need me for this-so I will go make myself useful doing something else."

Drakken looked at him suspiciously. "What something else?"

Zorpox turned and walked out, but not before giving Drakken a few last words. "Something to keep my dearest Kimberly Ann busy." He laughed as he disappeared.

The blue doctor shook his head and went back to work. It didn't really matter-it wasn't like Zorpox could do anything to hurt him...could he?

X X X X

As soon as Zorpox was out of earshot, he stopped laughing. Drakken was a fool, trusting in his abilities too much, especially when they always let him down. The blue doctor thought that the headband would stop Zorpox from working against him-and to a certain extent it would. The caped villain couldn't implement a plan to steal from Drakken, or threaten him, but as long as his plans didn't threaten the other villain directly, he could easily work behind his back. First things first though-he needed to get the rest of the items he needed for his plan. His next stop...Freugal Lucar's house.

Zorpox went down to the hanger, then hopped into a hovercraft. He bent down and looked under the console, and spotted a small GPS tracking chip. Well, that would be easy enough to deal with. He pulled out a cable from his belt, and used it's minicomputer to overwrite it. He then programmed it to make it look like he was going to random places, nowhere near where he was really going.

He lifted off, and piloted the craft toward Philadelphia. He set it down just outside town, and managed to sneak his way to the cheap villain's house. He decided that the direct approach may be the best. He knocked on the door. Lucar's mother opened the door. She didn't even bat an eye at the way Zorpox was dressed.

"Are you one of my son's friends? You look sorta familiar." She eyed him quizzically.

"Um...yes, I'm one of your son's friends, Mrs. Lurman."

"Are you that boy that was here with that red headed young lady?"

He wasn't sure quite how to answer that question-they were the ones that had gotten her son taken to jail, and she may hold a grudge. "No, but I get that a lot-I'm told we really look alike, but I've never actually met him." Well, technically it was true.

"Oh." She sighed. "I was just hoping you could tell me how he's doing-I think he's letting this game go a bit too far."

"Game?" Zorpox asked.

"Yeah, he told me that he was playing a big game with some of his friends, and he may be away for a while, and that I wasn't supposed to get worried. He even told me that they would be wearing all sorts of weird costumes. I got a visit from some men dressed as policemen a few months ago, and they said that some guy named Frugal Lucar was in jail and needed bail money. I shooed them off-I think they just wanted to know where my son was-but I can't break the rules of the game."

Zorpox nodded, but what he really wanted to do was roll his eyes. Lucar's mother was off her rocker. Well, if she though it was all a game, maybe he could play along. "Yes, Mrs Lurman, you did the right thing. Your son is in the hiding phase of the game, and he sent me to get some things from his computer."

Now she looked at him closely. "And how do I know that you aren't part of the other team?"

Zorpox hesitated. How could he prove it? She was eying him almost like she expected him to say something...maybe a secret word or phrase? He could always knock her out and take what he needed anyway, but he really didn't feel...right...about attacking her. He frowned-maybe he could convince her another way.

"Talk is cheap-maybe I can show you something?" Maybe he could reprogram a computer to show Lucar...he could try a voice changer...ideas just started running through his mind, but he couldn't think of one that would work in the time he had. However, after he had spoken, she smiled and nodded.

"Yes, talk is cheap-you know the password. Go ahead, but tell my son that he needs to call me-I know he likes his games, but this one has gone on long enough-over a year! I've been trying to get him to leave the house, but I still want him to visit. Will you pass that along for me?" Her eyes pleaded with him.

"Yes, I promise I'll try and get a message to him." _Great-I just promised a crazy lady that I'd try and get a message to her son in jail-what next?. _Zorpox walked into the house, and no sooner had he gotten inside than he was attacked.

X X X X X X X X

It seemed that Kim actually cooking a good meal _was_ the fluke.

"Ow, ow...ow-ow-ow..." Kim moaned, holding her hair in one hand, the mixer in the other, trying to pry them apart; now she knew why cooks wore hairnets...she'd just been getting comfortable with the mixer, too. She hadn't thought to put her hair up, confident in her skills, so when she had leaned over to check the food, her hair had dipped into the batter; a half second later, Kim's head had been velcroed to the beaters. She had managed to get one of them separated, but was having trouble with the second. She was seriously considering cutting her hair before she finally got it undone.

From there, she cleaned up the kitchen, then threw away her latest batch of batter, since it was full of red hairs. Then, she made her fourth trip of the day to her bathroom, this time to wash her hair in the sink. She had already made a visit to put on some burn cream, and two other visits for band-aids where she'd cut herself. It was ironic, really; she fought villains armed with swords, knives, laser and hundreds of other things that could hurt her, and it was the kitchen that left her in pain.

Finally cleaned up, the teen went back downstairs for her next try. She was getting very disheartened, Rufus notwithstanding-the mole rat had been the perfect assistant, helping her with everything, doing his best to keep her safe. In fact, if the mole rat hadn't been there, it was unlikely the house would have still been standing. As it was, there was a burn mark across one outlet, stains on the walls and floor, the corner of the counter top was cracked, and she'd gotten a fork embedded three inches in the refrigerator door-and no matter what she tried, she couldn't get it out.

After her first perfect batch of brownies, she couldn't get anything right. She'd tried recipes just a little more complicated, and everything went wrong. Finally the last time she'd tried to recreate the original batch of brownies-with disastrous results; it looked like the mixer had just been biding its time, waiting for Kim to get complacent-then, it had struck hard and fast, leaving disaster in its wake. One of the little globs of batter had hit Rufus and stuck to him; and he wasn't about to eat it. He dashed off somewhere to find a sink and get cleaned up. He hadn't returned yet.

She sighed, deciding that this was going to be her last attempt for the day. She went to the refrigerator and got out what she needed, then grimaced. She'd have to go to the store after she was done, or else her parents might notice that they were running low on certain foods-she'd gone through almost a dozen eggs already.

Yet again she took the ingredients and put them into the bowl. She was getting more that a little frustrated, so when she was cracking the eggs, she ended up slamming them together harder than she wanted, and got some of the eggshell in the batter. She growled, then pulled out a spoon to dig out most of the shell. Some of the pieces were really small and she couldn't get them, but by this point she really didn't care anymore.

She went to the mixer, slipped the bowl under it, then turned it on and held the machine in a steely grip. Wisely, the mixer decided not to give Kim any problems. When she finished, she went over and turned the oven on, then went back to pour her batter. Unfortunately for her, during one of her earlier cooking adventures, she'd accidentally turned off the pilot light; now gas was pouring into the oven.

She finished with the batter, and grabbed the pan; she treated it roughly, then went over to the oven and practically threw it in. At this point Rufus came back, but stopped at the entrance to the kitchen when he saw Kim's face. He decided to stand outside and watch. Kim waited a few minutes, then her impatience grew, so she went over to look in at her brownies. It wasn't even warm inside the oven. She looked back and realized the pilot light wasn't on, so she reached up for the auto ignition without thinking.

Rufus made a loud squeak as he saw her move, and Kim had enough time for one last though.

This...

...would not...

...be good.

FOOOOOOM!

* * *

_**A/N **Well, this chapter was a bit shorter than the last few, but it ended with a couple of cliff hangers, so I guess it all evens out._


	8. Death From Above

_**A/N **The story receives it title from this chapter._

_Beta checked by Eddy13_

* * *

**Chapter 8: Death From Above**

_(Sunday Afternoon-Week 2)_

Zorpox stepped though the doorway, ahead of Mrs. Lurman, and something large dropped on his head. There was a loud hiss, and he felt something sharp dig in and scratch the back of his neck. He whirled, trying to see if Lucar's mother was attacking him, but she looked just as startled as he was. He spun again, reaching up toward his head, and felt something scratch across his arm above his sleeve. He pulled it back and looked at it, and noticed three faint bloody lines.

Even if Zorpox had no clue what was going on, Mrs. Lurman seemed to know. "Fluffy-stop-let go of him. What are you doing!" She tried to work her way behind Zorpox and grab the...thing...attached to his head. Finally she got a hold of it and pried it away. When Zorpox turned back around, he saw a ball of orange and brown fur sitting in her arms. Lucar's mother scolded the cat.

"Fluffy! What have I told you about attacking people!" The cat seemed to hide in her arms, its ears back. It hissed at Zorpox. Mrs. Lurman looked at him. "I'm sorry, she only attacks new people. Are you all right?"

The villain nodded, but eyed the cat, dreaming up all the ways he could punish it...shrink it to the size of a mouse, shave it, declaw it-the choices were endless. He shook his head to clear it, then forced a smile on his face. "It's...ow...all right, Mrs. Lurman...if you'll just let me get what I need..." His voice trailed off, and she nodded, pointing toward the stairs.

Zorpox went down and sat at Lucar's computer. It was a very old model, barely powerful enough do anything. It was so old it didn't even have a plug in that Zorpox could jack into. He though for a second, then looked around. Sure enough, there were a number of floppy disks nearby, and a couple of CDs. He grabbed one of the CDs and place it in the drive, then started searching his hard drive. He came across Lucar's plan to destroy the Internet, and copied the file onto the disk, but kept looking.

Finally he found what he wanted-Lucar's passcode and method of hacking into Smarty Mart's systems. With this, he could make any number of changes to the Smary Mart Mainframe. He could lower prices on things, mess with their shipping info, hire and fire people, and so many other things. He chuckled.

"What's so funny?" Mrs. Lurman asked from behind him.

He let loose a yelp, and spun in his seat. How had she sneaked up on him? "Nothing, Mrs. Lurman, your son just left me a funny message on the computer." He quickly got up and shut down the computer before she could ask what it was. He grabbed his CD, and placed it in his pocket. "I've really got to go..."

She shook her head. "You can't go yet, I just made a batch of brownies-I got them five packets for a dollar at Smarty Mart."

"Really? Isle thirteen, in the Granny Crocker section? I love those!" Zorpox jumped up and down, then frowned. Where had that come from?

She led him upstairs, then gave him a couple of brownies. He ate them quickly, but savored the taste...then he got another idea. "You're probably not going to use all those packets yourself, are you? Could I have one of them?"

Her eyes widened and she grinned. "Sure, always happy to help out a fan of Smarty Mart." She went over to her cabinet and grabbed one, then brought it back to him. "Here you go." She walked him to the door. "And don't forget to pass my message along to my son."

"Don't worry," he vowed, "I make sure he calls you." Zorpox walked to the hovercraft and frowned. Now, how was he going to get a message into Lucar's cell?

X X X X X X X X

Kim walked forward to the main double doors of the hospital, hoping and praying that she wouldn't see her mom. Of course, that was exactly when the adult came out. Ann instantly spied her daughter standing there, and just as quickly knew that Kim was in pain, even though she was trying to hide it. As she got closer, she gasped at Kim's condition. The teen was holding her arms out in front of her, to prevent her burns from rubbing anything-and that was the first thing the doctor saw. Kim also had a bruise over one eye, numerous cuts on her hands, and she was limping. Ann grabbed her daughter and helped her through the doors, then motioned for one of the interns to come over.

The man came over with a wheelchair, prepared to have Kim sit in it, but the stubborn teen wouldn't. Instead the two doctors were forced to support Kim on both sides, being careful of her arms, and lead her to an unoccupied examination room. There, she was taken to the small table in the middle of the room, where her mother forced her to lay down. Ann left, then returned with the supplies she would need.

First, she spread burn cream on her daughter's arms and face, Kim wincing the entire time. She then took care of the cuts on her hands, cleaning them and spraying a special substance on to speed up her healing. Finally the doctor checked Kim's leg and ankle, to make sure nothing was broken. Ann looked at her daughter.

"Kim, I know you try and be careful on your missions, but this is really bad. I think you should let GJ take care of things, at least until Ron gets back. You two work so well together, and-"

"Mom." Her mother paused, looking at Kim. "I...um, I didn't get hurt on a mission."

"Then what..." Ann looked at her, totally at a loss for words.

"I was...um...trying to...cook."

Her mother's eyes widened. "Kimberly Ann Possible, you know you're not supposed to cook without adult supervision! It's a wonder you didn't burn the house down or kill yourself."

Kim hung her head. "I know, mom, but I really want to learn-I mean, Ron's off at that cooking thing, and I don't have anything to do, and cooking's the only thing that I can't do." She frowned before finally repeating a phrase she had heard Ron use. "It vexes me so." She smiled slightly, thinking of him. Her depression quickly returned. "Mom, I can do anything-but I can't cook!"

Ann sat up on the table next to Kim. "Now Kim, you know you can do anything you set your mind to; but don't forget, if you can do anything, that also means you can fail, too." Kim looked over, confused. "If you do fail at something, that just means that you have to try harder. Everyone has things that they excel in, and things they need to work on. You've been very fortunate because most things come very easily to you." Kim nodded, remembering how she learned to fly her fathers space craft just by watching Fredrick the monkey control it.

"But you've also got things that don't come as easily to you." Her mother continued. "I know that you don't find math and science as easy as your brothers do; it's something that you have to work harder at-and so is cooking." She took a deep breath. "And if you really want to learn to cook, I'll try and help you out...but Kim, I think that you should wait for Ron." Ann smiled. "You work so well together, him helping you with cooking is really an extension of the bond you've made on your missions; only here, Ron's taking the lead. You're...not still jealous about that, are you?"

The teen shook her head. "I'll admit I was, at first, but now it's no big-I mean, he's entitle to excel at one or two things-and it just happens that one of the things he's good at is the one thing I'm awful at." Kim rolled her eyes. "Of course, now that I'm interested in cooking again, Ron goes off on his trip." She made no mention of the fact that she was only interested _because_ of his trip. "I just...I don't know, I wanted to be able to show him that I could cook too-even if it's something as simple as brownies." She took a deep breath. "But, I guess I can try and wait until Ron gets back."

Ann breathed a sigh of relief. "Well, honey, that's good." She had a sudden horrific thought. "Kim, if you've been burned this badly, what does my kitchen look like?"

"Um, we may need to repaint."

X X X X X X X X

Zorpox shook his head. Obviously, they didn't consider Lucar much of a threat. He was being held in a minimum security prison, only two security guards for the whole building. Zorpox was dressed in a cloak with his head completely covered. He walked up to the security desk. "I need to see Frugal Lucar."

One of the guards shook his head, then looked over at his partner. "Are you on the list?" Zorpox shook his head. "Then I'm afraid you can't get in." He looked at Zorpox boredly.

The villain grinned, then leaned down. "I'm making an exception." He pulled his laser out of his pocket and shot one guard, then the other. They both dropped without making a sound. Zorpox moved around the desk, and shoved one of them out of his seat onto the floor. He then sat down and pulled up the location for Frugal Lucar.

Zorpox got up, whistling cheerfully, and headed down the halls to his cell. Once he reached the door, he ducked his head down and slid open the small slot for food to go through. "Lucar, are you in there?"

"Who is it? Did my mom finally spring for my bail?" he brought his eyes up to the slot and peered out. "Who are you? You're not a guard."

"Good observation." Zorpox sneered. "Here." He passed a small phone inside. "Call your mother."

"What? My mother? What for?"

Zorpox sighed. "She misses you, and guilt tripped me into getting you to call her." He pointed the laser at Lucar's head, so the cheap villain pulled back and dialed the phone.

"Mother?" He paused as she spoke on the other end. "No, Mother, I'm fine-but I need you to post my bail...yes, it's part of the game...no, no, don't call Uncle Benny, I'm fine. Just post my bail okay? Wait-wait, don't go, I've got one last question...how much are those cookie mixes I like? Ten for a dollar!" There was another pause. "No, Mom, I don't think I'll be home tomorrow-I'll visit when I can...yeah, I'll pass on the message...bye Mom." He clicked the phone off.

"You seemed to make an impression on my mom-she really likes you." He stepped back from the door. "You can get me out of here now." A long pause. "Hello?" He stuck his head up against the slot again, but no one was there. "Hellloooo?" Hmmm. He didn't know who the blue man was that brought him this, but he was a real villain-just like what he wanted to be.

Twenty minutes later, one of the security guards woke up. The groggy guard hit the alarm as soon as he was awake, and soon the place was swarming with men. The warden in charge of the prison reviewed the cameras. "Any idea how to tell who this is?" His chief of security, who also happened to be his wife, shook her head. "Who's cell is it?"

She consulted the charts. "A Frugal Lucar. Strictly small time, I don't know why someone would break in here just to talk with him."

The warden frowned. "For whatever reason, someone thinks he's important, and we don't have enough security here. Let's get him transferred to the Global Justice center-they can deal with things if someone else tries to break in to see him."

His wife nodded, then looked over her shoulder at the two security guards. "And what should we do with them?" They'd been ambushed and overwhelmed by a single person, and obviously weren't fit to be security guards at a prison.

"Fire them." He turned, but then paused, turning back. "No, wait-there was an opening at the Go City Stadium-send them there." He smiled. "A fitting punishment-let them deal with people trying to sneak in-maybe they'll learn something."

X X X X

Zorpox rode in his hover car back to Drakken's lab. He'd taken care of Mrs. Lurman's wishes, and gotten what he'd needed from Lucar's computer. Now he had control of Smarty Marts' computers, and he just needed one other thing for his plan. He landed back at the villain's hideout, then went back to his room, and prepared to work on the different things he would need. He sat down, and quickly reached over to flip on a desk lamp. It flashed once, sharply, then went dark. Zorpox sat there in surprise.

The light had blown out. He frowned, then looked at the light, closer. As he sat in the darkness, contemplating the lamp, he came to a startling realization, and an idea started to form. As he thought through the plan, the implications of everything, he realized that this stratagem would be spectacular, a far greater plot, that could be years in the making. He chuckled.

He stood and left, to return shortly with another lightbulb. He placed it in the lamp, and everything lit up; finally, he took out the CD he had stolen from Lucar, and transferred its files into his belt microcomputer for safe keeping. That gave Zorpox most of the things that he needed for his current plot, but now he had other projects that needed work. He leaned back to consider his bigger plan.

Zorpox was very much about thinking things through, planning for every eventuality and contingency, but he also had one other advantage over all the other villains that he knew of-he was content to bide his time. While they were willing to work on things for days, weeks, even a month at a time, he knew that some things could not be rushed. No, Zorpox was going to plan this out very carefully-six, eight months, maybe a year-this would be planned out until every piece fell into place.

Since it all had to be planed out point to point, he spent a few hours designing the basics, figuring out the technical and logistical things he would need. He would most definitely need more than one base, more than this single hideout that Drakken had given him. He would need to use those blueprints he had designed, create lairs that would give him any advantage he could get over Kim. She, however would be the focal point-the hinge upon which his plan rested. _Oh, yes, Kimberly Ann, things are going to get so very interesting, won't they? _

Before that began, however, Zorpox needed a few things-so he leaned forward and began typing, designing, creating a few of the machines and superweapons that he would need as well as other that he had ideas for-they could be used as decoys to keep Kim busy while he worked on his real plan. First he created the Sonic Evaporator, a machine designed for the large scale evaporation of water sources; next came the Tectonic Distributor, a continent-moving and earthquake-creating device. Thirdly he took some adaptations from a device that Drakken had made, expanding its range and usefulness; he created the Sonic Neutralizer, a weapon designed to match the frequencies of spoken words, and dull them so they could not be heard.

The villain leaned back, then looked up at his clock. 6:57 pm. Zorpox quickly read over his plans and files, and considered the other things that he would have to take care of. He decided that he had a very good start, and knew that he could take care of some major issues tomorrow after visiting Jack Hench. Zorpox finally stood, then moved over to his bed; after dealing with that cat, he really needed the rest.

X X X X X X X X

Kim had spent a few more hours at the hospital, helping to cheer up the kids stuck inside. She'd brought Rufus along and he seemed to be a big hit. After the children had gotten over his weird appearance, they'd quickly taken a liking to him, so he'd flitted from kid to kid, making a total of four trips around the room. After that, he'd told them all goodbye, and Kim had promised they would be back later, hopefully with Ron next time.

She got home later in the evening, and wandered into the kitchen. Fortunately, it wasn't as bad as Kim had made it sound. Three of the four walls were fine, while the fourth one had a scorched outline of the teen imprinted on it. They would only need to paint the one wall-and by 'they', it was meant Kim. Her 'punishment' for cooking without telling her parents was just to simply clean the kitchen up. She'd already fixed some of the smaller damage, leaving just repainting the wall. It had been a real chore to get the fork out of the refrigerator door, and finally her father had to get a fourteen-thousand-pound press to remove it.

Kim was just going up to her room to got ready for bed when she heard a beeping sound. She dashed in and grabbed up her Kimmunicator, bringing it up to her face as Wade appeared on screen.

The first think Wade did was apologize. "Sorry it took so long, Kim, but I've finally got some hits on that search you wanted. It looks like Dementor is the one we're after-he's been ordering tons of chemicals, including liquid nitrogen, Ammonium, Chlorate, liquid Oxygen, and some other things."

Kim nodded, her chemistry studies coming to mind. "All the things you'd need to create a bunch of rockets. So he's probably building the satellites, and needed the golf club to finish them. Give me a few minutes and I'll be ready to go." She reached to turn off the Kimmunicator, but Wade stopped her.

"Kim, you can probably wait until tomorrow-the launch conditions right now aren't ideal-if he did launch his rockets, up to a third of them could crash." He gave a small grin. "Besides, I was wanting to give my Wadebot 3.0 a shot in the field."

Kim frowned. "Wadebot?"

"Ron never told you? Um, I mean, um, it's just a project I've been working on-you know, kind of a way for me to get out of my room sometimes." _Uh oh._

"Ron? What does Ron know about this? What are you talking about?" Kim eyed him.

Wade sighed, and hesitantly told her all about the Wadebot's first mission to the Amazon, and the second when they were looking for Kim's book on cheese. Kim didn't look pleased. "I always wondered how Ron got that Monkey book, but forgot to ask him." Now she looked at him. "You were in on it, too?"

Wade tried to explain. "You said after Ron went to stop Drakken on Christmas that you never wanted him to go on a mission alone-so I kinda created the Wadebot to fill in for you." He rubbed the back of his neck. "They didn't work so well, but I think this one is perfect." He hesitated. "Besides, if Ron shouldn't go without backup, neither should you."

Kim glared at him. "I think I do fine on my own, Wade. Besides, I have Rufus with me, so it's not like I'm going in alone." A pause. "But, I am kinda curious to see your Wadebot-alright, it'll wait till tomorrow." She told Wade goodnight, then signed off. She got ready for bed, and the tole of the day quickly caught up with her. A few minutes later, she was asleep.

* * *

_**A/N** I always wondered why Frugal Lucre was put with all the other villains-after all, he really wasn't that dangerous, and he only had one take over the world scheme. If GJ thought he was dangerous for some reason, though, maybe he would be moved to a Global Justice Detention center._


	9. Dress for Success

**A/N **_My last couple of chapters have been pretty short, but this one is quite a bit longer. A lot to go through, here, including another of my favorite scenes._

_Beta read by Eddy13_

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**Chapter 9: Dress for Success**

_(Monday Morning-Week 2)_

The next day, Zorpox got up bright and early, way before Drakken, and checked on the blue villain's work. There were now nine satellites. The caped villain wondered at this, because at the speed Drakken had been working, there should have been more. He went over to a lab computer and pulled up footage to see what Drakken was doing, but for some reason he was out of the lab for nearly four hours-but the blond didn't really care why-actually, it worked to his advantage-the longer the doctor took, the better a position Zorpox would be in.

He quickly looked through the satellites, checking the actual part setup, and was pleasantly surprised. Drakken may be a fool, and prone to over thought, but he could definitely build a superweapon. He'd actually improved on the design, increasing power flow by thirty percent, and halved the size of the power conductors as well. Zorpox made a mental note to adjust the blueprints he had made to take into account the changes. As he pulled his hand out of the last satellite, he hissed in pain.

The caped villain held his hand up to the light, noting a long gash across his palm. The gloves he was wearing were substandard; while the clawed fingertips were impressed, the rest of the glove was simply cloth. The villain hadn't had time to make any adjustments to his wardrobe when he had first fought Kim Possible. He decided this was a good time to amend that flaw. He moved down a side corridor.

Zorpox walked into the lab...his lab, as he had begun to think of it. Drakken could have his main lab-this villain wanted a small out of the way room that he could work in peace. After he had scrambled the cameras in the room, he began working on upgrades; upgrades to his outfit. First he slipped off his gloves and looked them over. They were a purple color, with black fingers; the ends of the fingertips tapered to a clawed point, filed to a sharpness that let him easily cut through wood, metal, and many other substances. They were made of a strong alloy, nearly indestructible; they wouldn't rust, chip, or break.

He picked the glove up, then began messing with the sharpened points, placing a small pressured gas inside of the tips-he added a quick release, and with the right amount of pressure, he could cause the fingertips to shoot out; unfortunately, he would have to get a new set of claws, and specially prepare them if he wanted to do it again. He test fired the weapon directly ahead, and watched as the small darts stuck into Drakken's metal wall. After the weapon met his approval, he attached new tips, then continued his upgrades.

The inside lining was taken out next, then recovered with a special rubber compound-flexible, but electrical resistant. He used a second layer on the outside-better safe than sorry-this layer was also fitted with a rubber/metal compound of his own design-since the villain was always messing with something or other that was electrical, he knew that padding the gloves wasn't just smart, but a necessity; even Drakken's gloves were made with an electrical-nullifying material. The metal helped to give the gloves strength against the slash he had received on his hand-it should be strong enough to protect against a sword strike as well. He had other ideas for upgrades to the gloves, but decided that they could wait.

Next Zorpox took off his boots, then brought out a second and third pair that Ron had actually packed away before he left for the nonexistent cooking expo. He looked at the first pair, his set of rocket skates that Kim had insisted he have. Ron had hardly ever used them, since his roller blading skills were practically nonexistent-throw in super fast speeds, and it was a disaster waiting to happen. Zorpox, however, knew he would be much more skilled in their use. He pried out the necessary parts, then picked up the second pair of shoes. A gift from 'Janitor' Joe, it was the pair of shoes that included rockets for flight. After taking parts from it as well, he combined them together to his own boots, giving them the abilities of both.

He slipped the boots back on, the pulled off his cape. The villain tossed it to the side, in favor of a similar cape made of a different material. The new cape was identical in color and shape to his old one, but had a few significant advantages. This one couldn't be torn, and had a special property; if he snapped it out in a certain way, it would become rigid, and could be used as a glider-helpful for quick escapes. Zorpox may not like to run from a fight, but there were always tactical reasons to retreat.

Other minor adjustments were made, to the clothing-including body armor, and thermal-resistance shielding-he wouldn't want his clothes to catch fire for some reason. The last upgrades were added to his hat and goggles. The hat now supported a special sensor suite, as well as omni-directional audio recording devices. The goggles had a number of changes; thermal detection, for nightvision; special polarization to prevent blinding; pressure sealing, in case he needed to use them underwater; even small cameras that recorded everything, so he could review it later.

Finally the villain filled his belt pouches with a number of different items that could provide useful. He made small duplicates of some of Kim's gadgets, including laser lipstick, an elastic constricting agent, a similar knockout gas, and a set of four small suction pads for his hands and feet. He even had a small rebreather that would actually draw oxygen out of water allowing him to breathe. Now Zorpox was as well equipped as Kim herself.

He looked up, to the clock on the wall, and realized that it was too late to head to HenchCo today; he had planed to spend the time meeting with the business leader, then planning and constructing his new lairs-if he were to head out now, Drakken may wonder what was taking up so much of his time. With a sigh, he stood and grabbed some other things to put in his pouches, then sat and began putting them in place. He finished closing the last pocket, then heard an almost non-existent sound as the door behind him opened. Rather than turn, he busied himself with something else, waiting for the stealthy intruder to say something.

Realizing that Drakken would have said something by now, Zorpox spoke as he turned. "Shego, trying to sneak up on me?" The green woman stiffened, but otherwise tried not to react. She didn't trust Zorpox, and was trying to keep tabs on him. He grinned at her. "Well, my dear, sorry to disappoint."

She growled, then inquired, "What are you doing?"

He held his gloved hand up, wiggling the fingers. "Just sharpening some claws. You know all about that, don't you?" He looked at her, pointedly. She glanced down at her own claws, automatically, before making eye contact.

She ignored his tone. "You were doing more than that." She motioned toward his table full of different tools. "Was it part of Drakken's big plan, or something else?"

"Why, what else could I be working on?" He feigned ignorance. "Don't you trust me?"

Her look said it all-_What do you think?-_and he chuckled, then stood. Shego backed away, hesitantly. He seemed to enjoy her look of uncertainty and fear. His next question threw her for a loop. "Do you play chess?"

She frowned. "What's that got to do with anything?"

He tapped his chin with a single clawed finger. "Nothing...or perhaps everything, you never can tell. You can tell a lot about people by comparing them to chess pieces. The henchmen are just pawns, many of the villains are just bishops or knights." He lifted his hand, in thought, then lowered it to point at her. "You, just like Kim, are a queen."

She was slightly surprised to hear that Zorpox had such a high opinion of her; then she realized that if he considered her a queen, he would know that she was more of a threat than anyone else-especially Drakken. "So what does that make you?"

He touched his chest. "I'm obviously the king." Shego made a gagging noise, but he ignored the interruption. "I'm pulling all the strings, moving the pieces, giving the orders-do you disagree?" She could only mutely shake her head. "And why-because I'm the smartest, the most devious, the most cunning."

Shego finally tried to work up some of her normal sarcasm. "Oh, sure, you're doing _real_ well on the devious department-you made GJ think a monkey attacked a golfer."

He chuckled. "No, I removed two knights that you could otherwise use against me, and distracted the only other king on the board. Come on, Shego, stay current. How am I supposed to win if you don't even know you're playing the game?"

"Oh I'll win, Zorpox, you can count on it."

"Oooh, scary." He made an over exaggerated shiver. "Well, I really must be going."

"Go, go where?"

He grinned. "You'll see."

X X X X X X X X

Monday morning, Kim woke up and got ready for school, then went downstairs for breakfast. She was surprised that her father wasn't there. "Where's Dad?"

Ann looked up with a smile. "He went back into the space center late last night-he had some big idea that couldn't wait until the morning." Her husband was brilliant, but also a little excitable-once something got into his head, he had to act on it immediately, or else he was afraid he'd forget it when his next amazing thought came along. "As far as I know, he's still there." He could go days without sleep; and when he came back, he'd sleep for days-it was a vicious cycle.

Kim nodded, familiar with her father's fascination with rockets and robots and other science things, even if she didn't share the interest. She remembered when her father had first set her down to watch the show Captain Constellation; he'd been extremely disappointed when she'd left midway through...of course, you couldn't blame a three-year-old that left a non-cartoon filled show. Since then, anytime the subject of the show came up, she tried to avoid it. It didn't help that both Ron and Wade like the show too.

The teen sighed as she started thinking about Ron again. She wouldn't admit it to herself, but she was dreading the school day without Ron. Sure, she had friends at school, like Monique and Felix, as well as acquaintances, but she spent nearly twenty four hours a day, seven days a week with Ron-and without him there, she was really at a loss for what to do. He may be afraid of everything, and an awful student, but he made her day interesting.

She quickly packed her things, then sat across from her mother for breakfast. Ann gave her daughter a smile, and the two chatted until Kim had to go to school. She met Monique halfway, and after a few minutes with her, Kim didn't think the day would be so bad. She arrived at school, then went into Barkin's first class of the day. She still hadn't figured out if he was the only teacher she had-she sort of vaguely remembered a math teacher that Ron hated, but nothing else. She had just gotten settled in when she heard the Kimmunicator go off. She reached into her backpack to pull it out, giving Mr Barkin a weak smile. Wade appeared.

"Kim, I don't think we're going to need to look for Dementor-he's attacking the space center."

Kim's eyes widened. "Dad!"

Wade quickly shook his head. "He's okay, Kim, they've all been evacuated-there's security in place, but your dad doesn't know how long it will hold-I've got a ride set up as soon as your ready." Kim nodded, then looked at Barkin for permission to leave. He nodded his assent, irritated, so she dashed out before he could give her extra homework. She ran into the girls locker room and quickly changed, before rushing outside to find her ride. She was expecting to see a car, or maybe even a helicopter, but instead there was a contraption that looked like a computer terminal from an airport. She frowned and walked up to it carefully.

As she got closer, the screen on the top lit up, and the entire things turned toward her. She grinned as she saw Wade's face. "I take it this is the Wadebot 3.0?"

He grinned back. "Yup-state of the art-stealth mode, telescoping extending arms, and new with the 3.0 model..." He hit a button at his computer. "A forcefield."

Kim stepped back as a blue bubble appeared around the Wadebot. She stuck her hand out and touched the field, getting a slight static shock, but nothing more. She tried to push her hand through the bubble, but it was surprisingly tough-she couldn't even force a finger in. Wade hit some more buttons and the shield dropped. "Good against lasers, electricity, Shego's glow power, depths of up to 1000 feet, and the car wash." He got a funny look. "Don't ask. Okay, grab a hold, Kim, and I'll fly us to the space center."

She wrapped her arms around its slim neck, and watched as a small propeller appeared from the top of the Wadebot, just above the computer screen. She was surprised when the thing lifted them both off the ground. "Is this safe?"

Soon they were nearly fifty feet off the ground and moving higher. "Oh yeah, I fixed the flaws in the last model." She gave him a confused look. "I accidentally forgot to put all eight bolts in the plate connecting the propeller to the base-it...um, it flew off-that's how I lost the Wadebot 2.0." Ironically, this did nothing to increase Kim's confidence.

X X X X

In no time at all, they had arrived at the space center. The Wadebot set down in the parking lot, where all the evacuated personnel were. Kim's dad quickly arrived. "Kimmie-cub, good, you're here." Kim made a face at her dad's pet name, but listened as he continued. "This demented fella-"

"Professor Dementor." Kim said.

"-right. He broke into the lab, intending to steal the fuel for the new rocket system the space center is making. Fortunately he hasn't got it yet-he can't get into the secure vault where the supplies are." He walked with Kim up toward the secondary small entrance on the west side of the Middleton Space Center. She tried to open the doors, then noticed that there was a key card reader there. She motioned for her dad to slide a card and open it up, but he shook his head and shrugged. "Sorry, Kimmie-cub, the first thing that Professor Dementer did was cut the power to the whole building-I think he expected it to cut out the security."

"It didn't?" She asked, looking at her father.

Dr Possible pointed up toward the roof. "The space center has a number of solar panels on the roof that we use to store extra energy; we use it on a number of projects, but it's also used to power the security systems if we lose main power-it's designed to cut in if needed." He looked back over toward the door. "The outer doors are designed to auto lock if power is lost-it will prevent people from getting inside, but people can still go out the doors. The solar panels primarily power the main safe lock-it's electro-magnetically sealed, so as soon as that power cuts out, the lock is useless. Hopefully it will take that villain a while before he can get in; but if he finds out about the solar panels, he can cut power to the safe room and get in easily."

Kim nodded, then pulled out her grapple hair dryer. She pointed it up to the roof, remembering how she had gotten in after Monkey Fist had caused a lockdown. She watched as the Wadebot flew up to the roof, the paused as her dad gave her one last parting message.

"Be careful, Kim."

She nodded. "I will, Dad-now make sure everyone is a safe distance from the space center in case Dementor does something dangerous." She clicked the hairdryer and quickly got herself up to the roof, where she was able to sneak inside one of the air vents. The Wadebot followed, surprisingly silently for such a large machine. It was just barely able to fit inside without scraping the walls or ceiling. Kim made her way through the maze of shafts, checking with Wade periodically, and finally reached the central vault. She peeked out.

The inside vault was a mess. There were three henchmen trying to figure out the passcode to the giant steel door, and were using a lock-breaking tool of some sort. The large vault itself was designed with a reverse magnetic forcefield-there was no way to cut through the door without turning it off-and since the solar energy was still flowing to the vault, Professor Dementor had no way in.

The villain himself was standing on a floating platform in the center of the room; Kim wondered how he had gotten it inside until she spotted the hole in the ceiling. She knew that she would have to be careful-the villain had the high ground, and Dementor usually had all sorts of fiendish weapons. She focused closer, and realized that Dementor wasn't happy-he was gesturing and yelling-of course, he always yelled.

"Why are we taking so long with the opening of the door? At the rate you're going, I could have made my own rocket fuel and flown to the moon! And brought back cookies!" Two of the henchmen made the mistake of rolling their eyes. "You two! What are you doing! I should feed you to my dachshund!" They both shuddered and worked harder.

Dementer looked around, suspiciously. "Where is the cheerleader? She is usually here by now."

Kim popped out of the vent, landing right behind Dementor. "Boo!"

The villain jumped in place, then spun. He pulled a small flashlight out of his pocket and pointed it at her. She laughed. "Are you planning on doing your scary 'light under the chin thing'?"

"Ha! That shows what you know, Fräulein Possible. This is not a flashlight, it is a flashbulb."

Kim raised an eyebrow. "And that's different...how?"

He grinned. "Watch." He pointed and flipped a switch, and Kim, acting on instinct, moved out of the way. There was a brief, bright flash, but that was it. Kim turned, confused.

"That's it? It flashes-like a camera?" She had no sooner finished talking when her arm started to sting. She looked down. Kim had been able to get most of her body out of the way of the flash, but her arm had been within its range. She now had a very red, very painful sunburn from her elbow to fingertips.

Things just got a lot more interesting.

X X X X X X X X

Things just got a lot more interesting; after the exit the caped villain had given, Shego decided to follow Zorpox and see where he was going. To her surprise, he lead her to the cafeteria. She was even more surprised when she saw all the henchmen waiting for them...waiting for Zorpox. She had heard all the commotion yesterday, but Drakken's henchmen were always loud-she'd though nothing of it. Now she was concerned.

She saw how the men looked at Zorpox-how they trusted him, waited for him, helped him...how he was part of the group. A few of the guys looked at Shego uncertainly, but she didn't do anything threatening, so they finally ignored her. She just watched as Zorpox walked into the kitchen and began to prepare food for them. He quickly made a number of meals for the henchmen, and soon the cafeteria was a busy place, all the men talking, joking around, just having a good time. Shego felt a pang at being left out, but quickly buried it deep-she didn't want to join in that sappy party, she liked how the men feared her.

She walked to the front of the line, pushing past the henchmen. A few of them gave her angry stares, but none of them dared to be overtly hostile. She finally reached the front, and saw Zorpox at a stove, lifting something off and plating it. He grinned when he saw her. "Shego, right on time. Are you hungry?"

The villainess hesitated, wondering if the food was poisoned. She finally decided to risk it-he couldn't have really prepared the plate just for her, and poisoning just didn't seem his style either. Besides, if he'd wanted to kill her, he could have done it the other night-she was still useful to him, in some way or another. Decision made, she snatched the plate with nary a thank-you and went to sit. She found a table she liked, and glared at the henchmen sitting there. They quickly left. She sat to eat her meal in peace...unfortunately, that was not to be.

A plate clanked down next to her, and she turned to the offending person, only to realize that it was Zorpox. He grinned and sat, watching her closely. She glanced at him, then finally stabbed her fork into the food. She brought it back to her lips and took a bite; her eyes widened, and she looked over at her caped foe. He just grinned back. She quickly dug back in, savoring the taste of the food; she'd never had anything like it. Drakken hadn't been kidding-Stoppable was a great cook.

"You know, the way you're going at that food, it makes it look like you haven't eaten in days." She paused long enough to point a glowing finger at him, but he just smirked. "Besides, I thought you'd be more into salads-you know, to keep your figure." She glared, eyes sending him daggers, but his smirk just got wider. His voice lowered to a whisper. "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone about the way you eat." Shego tried to work up some anger at his statements, but the food was just too good.

"Ah, well." He sighed and leaned back, after realizing he wasn't getting a reaction. "If you stuff yourself like this all the time, that's probably why you like fighting with Kim-helps you keep fit."

Shego finally set her fork down, to look Zorpox in the eyes. "I fight Kimmie because it's what I'm paid to do." She shrugged, then reached for her drink. "Besides, I enjoy it-so what." She set her drink back down. "Okay, I'll admit it-you really are a very good cook. You know..." She gave a sly little grin. "If you cooked for Kimmie like this, I'm sure she'd just fall head over heels for you." She watched in surprise as his face darkened.

"Oh, she doesn't like your cooking?" She laughed. "Oh well, we all know Kimmie doesn't have that good a taste anyway. Look at who she hangs around with..." The villainess seemed to muse for a second. "Or maybe you did try and win her heart with the cooking. Didn't work, sport?" She put on a sad face. "Did the prissy Princess reject your advances? She too good for you?"

Zorpox moved so fast she didn't even register it. She did, however, register the fork embedded in the table-between two of her fingers. She watched the villain stalk off, his cape twisting around him; her vision was then drawn to the still vibrating fork. It had missed piercing her hand by less than an inch, either by design or luck. The room was deathly quiet, all eyes now staring at the table, at her, watching to see what she'd do. Shego pulled her hand back slowly, self-consciously, then grabbed the fork and tried to pull it out. It wouldn't budge. She tried harder, finally breaking it free.

She looked at the bent and mangled fork, then stood and walked out of the cafeteria, unconscious of all the stares. A small smile flitted on her lips. It seemed that for all his actions, Zorpox had a temper too...

X X X X

Zorpox frowned, his steps coming rapidly as he left the cafeteria. He'd over reacted, he knew it, and Shego did too. Fortunately, she'd mistaken the direction of his anger. He wasn't mad over the indication that Ron was a buffoon-Zorpox already knew he was. No, the caped villain was upset over the way that Shego was talking about Kim-about the insults to her and her character. Kim may hang out with Ron, but that didn't make her less, didn't drop her status. She was too good for Shego.

Even so, Kim didn't consider herself to be better than anyone-well, she didn't go around like Bonnie, trying to be the Queen Bee of the school. Kim knew she had talent and skill, and wasn't afraid to show it; she forced herself to do the best that she could, and took pride in her achievements. If that made her a prissy Princess, well, she had every right to take pride in what she did.

Finally he shook his head to clear it. It wasn't worth dwelling on-and in the end, it was probably for the best-now Shego thought she had a way to taunt Zorpox, and instead she had nothing. He frowned, considering going back to the cafeteria, but knew that the henchmen were finished and probably putting things away by now. Instead he moved forward, down the hallway that led back the lab he had been in earlier. He needed a chance to cool off-he pulled out a few different machines and began working on them, letting his mind wander. He could check on Drakken later.

X X X X X X X X

Kim was in the middle of a backflip when she realized that she'd completely forgotten about the Wadebot. She flipped over near it, and when she had landed behind it, Wade flipped on the shield; it was easily able to counter the flash. Kim looked at Dementor. "Give up-you can't win."

"Yes I can, even with your fancy talking computer screen." Dementor huffed. "I could design something like that in my sleep-it takes a real genius to design a flashbulb!"

Wade stuck his tongue out. "Yeah, a demented genius."

"It is Dementor! What is this demented thing about? First the loud scientist, now you...does no one appreciate true genius?"

"Sorry, Dementor, there's only one genius in this room, and he works with me." Kim looked over the top of the Wadebot's shield, then watched as the villain seemed to look around the room. He scanned back and forth, then looked back at her. Finally he spotted the twelve-year-old's face on the machine.

"Him? You say that the kid on that screen is smarter than me? Ha! I am Professor Dementor-I invented the transportulator and the flashbulb-nothing can compare to that!"

Wade crossed his arms, and the Wadebot did likewise. "I invented this robot...and a holoprojector, grapple hook, and other things for Kim. I even invented a way to keep your cereal from going soggy in milk."

Dementor's eyes widened. "Oh, that would really be useful! I admit defeat to you, Robot-man, but not to you, Fräulein Possible." He suddenly frowned as another idea hit him. "Where is that boy who is always with you? Is he sick? If he is, Mama knows a very good soup that will make him better in no time."

Kim looked at Wade onscreen. "Why does everyone always think he's sick?"

Dementor spoke up again. "He follows you everywhere-plus he's so thin. What else would he be doing?"

"He likes to do lots of other things-play games, cook-and why am I telling you all this?" Kim stopped speaking and dropped into a fighting stance again.

"Don't you know? It pays to be polite!" Dementor fired his flash bulb again, to no effect-the Wadebot's shield held. He frowned, then looked down the flashing end of his weapon-and accidentally fired it. "Oh, my eyes!" Dementor staggered around blindly, and Kim chose that moment to attack. She was easily able to knock him down. The henchmen watched, but made no move to help Dementor.

Kim lifted him up to his feet. "While we're politely answering questions, why did you frame Monkey Fist?"

"Monkey Fist? I wouldn't frame that baboon even if I could-he has no vision! He loves monkeys too much-it is unhealthy-just like trusting a foe!" Dementor grinned, then opened his eyes, revealing that he hadn't blinded himself. He'd turned down the power on the flashbulb, and only received a slight tan for his efforts. Now he turned the weapon against Kim and flared it up to full power.

Even surprised, Kim was still faster than Dementor-but her only options was to retreat. She dove off the center platform Dementor was on, then made a quick about face and slid under his hovering transport. The short villain was unable to target her there, and knew that it wouldn't take long for Kim to figure out a way to stop him. He motioned to his henchmen, and they quickly jumped aboard. With a parting shot from the flashbulb, Dementor and his henchmen shot out of the hole in the roof, leaving the space center behind.

"Auf Wiedersehen, Kim Possible." He laughed until he had disappeared from sight.

Not two seconds after he'd left, the primary door to her left exploded inward, sending stuff flying everywhere. Kim watched as three fancily clad heroes rolled through the door, ready for action. Kim grimaced.

"Team Impossible-as always, your timing is impeccable." She rolled her eyes as they looked around, finally standing up after they realized there was no threat. "I could have used your help, oh say five minutes ago."

Dash glanced at another member of his team. "Someone isn't good at writing down directions."

Crash grinned sheepishly. "Did you know that Maple _Street_ isn't the same as Maple _Drive_?"

Kim just walked past them without a word. She finally met up with her dad outside in the hall. He looked in, then gave a sigh of relief to see that the security door was still intact. He turned to his daughter. "Thanks, Kimmie-cub. If Dementor had stolen that rocket fuel, it would have been weeks, or months before we could have launched the Hephaestus probes." Dr Possible frowned. "Of course, I still need to _finish_ the Hephaestus project. Anyway, good job-now get back to school-I'm sure these circus folks can clean things up."

"Dad, they're not...nevermind."

X X X X X X X X

After Zorpox had gone back to work in the lab, Shego focused on her offensive strategy, looking for things to show that the villain was working against Drakken. She had spent the last few hours trying to come up with some way to prove to Drakken that that sidekick was up to no good. She'd gone through all the footage for the last couple of days and couldn't come up with anything, even the footage from Zorpox's own room and the lab. She was good enough with computers to recognize the tampering that hid her foe's actions, the cycled tape, but she couldn't recovery any of the real footage. She went to her backup plan-she knew that the villain was using the computer in the lair, so theoretically, it should be available for her to access as well.

Except it wasn't. There was no record of any action being performed on Zorpox's terminal in his room. She tapped her fingers against the desk and growled. He must have locked the computer off from the central system. Fine-the back up-back up plan-she'd break into his room. That was perhaps the most surprising thing yet-the door was unlocked.

She walked in, wary of traps, but nothing happened. She finally sat and booted up his computer, only to realize that he'd encrypted a section of the computer and protected it with a keyword-and after multiple tries, she realized she would never guess it-it wasn't even Nacos!

After her twelfth attempt, she received a prompt on her screen: _Shego, nice to know that I can attract so much of your time. Don't you have anything better to do, like I don't know, DIE! _She twitched back at the last word, and fell out of her chair. She looked around frantically, scanning for danger, but didn't see anything. Finally there was a loud laugh issued from the speakers on the computer. She stood up, and forced herself to take a deep breath. She would not let him get to her like this.

She gave up on the computer and made her way around his room, looking for something, anything to use against him. Nothing-if it weren't for the computer, she wouldn't even know that he'd ever been in this room. She bent down and looked under the bed in the room, and had almost given up her search when she decided to look one more place. She went over to the desk, and looked beside the computer in the trash bin. A single piece of paper sat at the bottom. She quickly snatched it up and tucked it into her suit, then left, figuring she could look at the paper later-she really didn't want to get caught in his room.

X X X X X X X X

Kim was not in a good mood after the events of her morning. Sure, she'd managed to stop Dementor from stealing the different supplies that he was going to use, but he got away-and she hated it any time the villains escaped. In the back of her mind, she knew that if Ron were here he'd point out that even though Dementor hadn't been captured, he _had_ been foiled.

The second strike had been the fact that somehow, Wade had made another slight error with his Wadebot-no sooner had the mission been finished, than the robot had totally died. Wade, for all his technical genius, seemed to have one small problem-ironically the same type of problem that plagued Drakken. Sometimes, when he was working on a new project, Wade didn't always pay attention to all the details-it seemed that he had failed to fully charge the batteries before he used the robot. It was actually pretty amazing that the thing hadn't died sooner, during the battle with Dementor. End result-Kim had to go back to school on foot, so it took her nearly twenty minutes longer than she had expected.

The third strike, making this a very bad day?

She missed lunch.

It was thus very understandable that Kim was in a bad mood, and upset enough to lash out at just about anyone. Fortunately she had the self control to keep the attitude to herself when it came to teachers, however one other little problem decided to rear her evil little head.

Bonnie was in fine form, casting insults at Kim, as well as Ron, yet somehow making it come out as observations and not snarky comments that a teacher could punish her for. If it weren't for Monique running interference...again...than the insults would have quickly escalated into a physical confrontation-and after the mission with Dementor, Kim was looking for an outlet.

Finally, Monique pulled her friend aside. "Kim, girl, what's wrong? You look ready to turn Bonnie into your own personal punching bag."

Kim gave a wry little smile at the comment. "I don't know, I'm just having a bad day." They were currently in Chemistry class, and the teens were working on a lab. Kim gripped her pencil tightly, looking over at her high school foe. "There's just something about Bonnie that makes me want to..." Kim's hand gripped tighter, and her pencil finally snapped.

Monique raised an eyebrow. "That's so NWI."

The red head dropped the broken pencil, and pulled out another from her backpack. "Yeah, I know it's not worth it, but a girl can dream, can't she?" She tried to focus back on the lab work. "So, um, how are things going for you, Monique?"

Her friend gave her a look that said-_changing the subject? Real smooth. _"I've got no complaints." Kim have her a look, and the dark haired woman sighed. "Fine, I've got one complaint-what's with all the guys here? They're either JWAB or nerds."

"JWAB?"

"Jocks without a brain. I mean, sure, some of them look pretty nice, and I might be willing to go after Brick to tweak Bonnie, but there's really no available date worthy guys here. Well, with one exception." Monique gave a small mysterious smile. "Except he's kinda off the market."

Kim was getting ready to ask who she was talking about, but could tell by the other teen's grin that Monique wasn't going to let that little bit of gossip go without a heavy price. Kim finally rolled her eyes-it wasn't like she was really looking for a date anyway. Unfortunately, Monique's teasing hints just caused her friend to wonder who the guy was.

As Kim lapsed into silence to consider this little bit of news, Monique smiled to herself-her mission was a success. The red head wasn't thinking about Bonnie anymore, but instead had been given a new question to muse over. If there was one thing that Kim hated, it was a mystery...unfortunately for her, there was no way that Monique would reveal the name of the only unattached, dateworthy guy in Middleton...and, there was no way that Kim would guess his name either. Fortunately for all involved, the aforementioned great catch wasn't even in Middleton right now...

X X X X X X X X

The caped villain had finally finished his project and returned to Drakken's lab. As soon as he'd come through the doors, the mad doctor was waiting for him. "Zorpox, where have you been? I need your help-I just thought of something."

Zorpox grinned. "You need my help-I thought you didn't need me anymore, that you had everything you needed for this plan?"

"Now that's not...I just..." He frowned. "I was thinking, you said that Kim always checks to see which villain has been getting different things, right?" Zorpox nodded. "Then if we start buying lots of rocket fuel, won't she notice it? I mean the electronics and parts for the satellite can be used for other things, but she'll put two and two together if she sees we're getting rocket fuels."

"Hmm, I hadn't thought of that." Actually, he had, but thought it might be good to play to Drakken's ego.

"Really? What do you think we should do?"

Zorpox frowned, playing along. "I don't know, do you have any good ideas?"

"Um...we could capture her."

The caped villain rolled his eyes. "And that's worked really well in the past, hasn't it?"

"Fine..." Drakken thought. ''Your idea of distracting her seems to be working well-what about doing something like that?"

"Okay." Zorpox nodded. "That sounds like it might work-but how to do it? We already made it seem like Dementor was framing Monkey Fist, so lets frame someone else. The bigger question is where do we get the rocket fuel from?"

The blue doctor stopped, thinking things through. "We can't steal from the Middleton Space center, because Kim's Dad will get involved, ordering is too dangerous..." he looked at Zorpox. "What am I missing?"

Now the other villain grinned. "The obvious. If you're going to steal from someone, and you don't want them to tell Kimberly, who do you steal from?"

"Jack Hench?"

_No, you idiot. _"Another villain Drakken, another villain. Can you see someone like Dementor going to Kimberly and saying some other villain has stolen from him? No, he's got way too much pride-he'll never admit to her someone stole from him-of course, even if he did, we could make it look like someone else stole from him instead."

"How?" Drakken frowned.

The other villain smirked. "You've got money-use it." Drakken mused for a second, then turned away from Zorpox, walking over to the communication console at the side of the room, intent on following the advice. The caped villain let himself out; he had someone else to check on.

X X X X

"Am I no longer worthy of your time?"

The voice caused Shego to twitch, and not just because he'd sneaked up on her-something about Zorpox gave her the heebie jeebies. She was currently reclined on her tanning bed, doing her best to improve her rather pale complexion. It took hours under the tanning lamp just to make sure that her skin wasn't a pasty green. This tanning room was her refuge, the one place that she could retire and relax, just let all her feelings die away. Anger and frustration at Drakken had been her most popular feelings; now a few more had been added to the mix-anxiety, fear, and most of all, confusion.

She'd read over the file that she'd found inside the trashcan-it had been nothing more than a recipe for haggis. Haggis-not even a superweapon, or designs for a lair, just a simple, if nasty, food. It didn't even look that important-it had been scribbled on a half sheet of paper. At first, Shego thought that it might have been a code for something, but she couldn't figure out for what-she'd run through every decoding she could think of-she was finally left with the realization that it was exactly as advertised-instructions on how to create haggis.

The villainess focused on Zorpox standing above her, and grinned. "Oh no, don't flatter yourself, Zorpox, I have much more important things to be doing. I mean, you're pretty low on my list-somewhere after listening to Drakken rant, but before scrubbing the bathtub." The sidekick's eyes narrowed. "Besides, don't you have better things to do than keep bothering me? I'm sure you need to whip up another batch of food for the henchmen, right? That is you're job, isn't it-a glorified caterer?"

His eyes took on a malicious glint as he sat on the stool her feet were resting on. "Hmm, 'glorified caterer'? Yes, but what's that make you? A secretary? You do take care of things for Drakken, don't you? You know, as I think about it, you clean up his messes, too-that makes you a janitor."

Now it was her turn to glare. "If I'm a janitor, I'm the highest paid janitor in the world." She forced herself to relax. "Besides, I never got too hung up on titles anyway. Drakken knows what I do, doesn't matter what he calls me."

The smirk only widened. "Sure, sure, whatever you say...a lackey by any other name...is still a lackwit."

It was only through intense concentration that she kept her cool. She spoke through gritted teeth. "I am not a lackey. Besides, don't you fall into that category more, _Ron_? I mean, you're Kimmie's little lapdog, aren't you? Always following her whim, at her beck and call." She pitched her voice high. "'Stop fooling around, Ron.'"

He leaned in close. "Lapdog or not," He hissed, "I'm still smarter than you, and that's what really bugs you, isn't it? Knowing that even Kimberly's little _pet_ is still smarter than you. Of course, if the buffoon is this good, that probably means that she's been holding back every time she's fought you, right? She wouldn't want to insult you by beating you too quickly." With that last statement, he stood to leave, but Shego changed tactics.

"So, what're we having for lunch tomorrow, Zorpox? I think that a salad would go very well with the haggis..." He paused, and Shego knew that she'd finally struck gold. "Of course, haggis just doesn't seem like that good of a choice for the meal anyway. Just so you know, I really don't go for sheep's lungs-a little too tough for me, wouldn't you agree?"

To her surprise, he turned not in anger, but in amusement. "I agree wholeheartedly, my dear. Don't worry, the haggis has a much more...important role in the main course. Don't worry, you don't have to worry-you don't want any haggis, I won't give you any-you won't see it all...Besides..." And now he smirked. "I plan on feeding this haggis to people of a little higher importance than you..." He laughed and went to find Drakken, leaving a puzzled Shego wondering just what exactly Zorpox had revealed about his plan.

X X X X X X X X

A puzzled Kim spent the rest of the afternoon deep in thought, considered every student in the highschool. Only one dateworthy person in all of Middleton? Kim had been wondering about her friend for a long time, and despite repeated questions, was still unsure what, exactly, Monique thought a good date-worthy guy was. The redhead knew that her friend had gone on a couple of dates since coming to Middleton, but as far as she knew, her friend was never in any sort of serious relationship-most of Monique's dates were considered platonic at best.

Under best (girl) friend rules, Monique always called Kim after her dates, and the two would talk about how the night out had gone. They would both discuss what they considered a good date-dancing and a nice restaurant-as well as some of the other things they expected in a date. Through it all, however, Kim never really heard what her friend considered to be the perfect date, or the type of person that was perfect. The red head had never really thought about it before, but she realized that most of Monique's dates hadn't been 'hotties'-and that left her to wonder what type of person her friend was attracted to.

As Kim sat back in her desk, she frowned to herself-of course, it was really a waste of her time to be trying to figure out her friend's taste in guys when she really didn't have a clue what she wanted in a guy herself. At one time, the red head had thought that Josh was golden, but that fairly quickly dissolved from a crush into just being friends. While the boy was rather nice to look at, she really didn't have that much in common with him. Sure, he was interesting and very intelligent, but overall they just never really hit it off.

No, she wanted someone different from Josh, or any of the other people she had considered dating-even Bobby Johnson had been nothing more that a way to irk Bonnie, and nothing had even developed there. Someone like Hirotaka was nice to look at, but after some thought she really couldn't get over the way he had acted-in hindsight, his 'cool' act had come off as nothing more than aloof. As she frowned to herself, she realized that she shared Monique's sentiments-there really wasn't anyone that she would consider date worthy. Kim mentally shrugged-whoever this mystery guy was, he was probably not in any classes she took.

Kim was glad that this was a study hall, so that she could let her mind wander like this. Generally she was so focused throughout the day, with projects and school work that she never really got a chance to think things through. It was actually rather refreshing not to have anything to work on.

The red head let her mind wander again, and drifted back to her attempts at cooking. She kept failing, it was sort of disheartening. As she thought about it, though, she had managed to cook some food well-the brownies had tasted very good; maybe she wasn't as inept in the kitchen as she thought. Oh well, nothing to do now except wait until Ron got back...unless she could find someone else to help her...

X X X X X X X X

Dementor looked around his lair. After Kim Possible had attacked him, he'd been sure she was going to come here next-instead, the place was quiet. Too quiet. He ordered his henchmen to stay on alert, and even turned on his defenses. He didn't like wasting the power like this, but something wasn't right. He'd learned that you never know when something could go wrong-and as Murphy's law states, anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.

And he was about to be proven right.

It started as a low rumbling, before transforming into a slight shaking, then a full blown earthquake. Pictures fell off Dementor's walls, vases broke, and finally one wall just collapsed inward. After the dust had settled, Dementor was facing a large robot. He glared at it with envy. It was the top of the line Burrow and Steal Robot-he'd considered buying one many times, but it had been way out of his price range-he only knew of one villain with enough money to buy such a large contraption.

"Senior Senior! Why do you break down my house? I told you I won't listen to your boy sing again. I have delicate ears! Henchmen-Attack!" Thirty men opened fire, pouring hundreds of red laser blasts into the robot. Unfortunately, they were all deflected off the armor. It was only now that Dementor noticed the upgrades to the model-again, very expensive. He had nothing that would be able to combat the giant robot. He just watched in disgust as the machine took everything he was using for his plan-explosives, machine parts, electronics, and most importantly, the rocket fuel. "I won't forget this!" He screamed as the robot disappeared.

X X X X

Drakken stood behind Zorpox, looking over his shoulder. He studied the diagrams, realizing that he now had all of Dementor's rocket fuel, as well as some odd trinkets that Drakken thought it would be nice to have. Zorpox turned the giant robot around, then had it leave by another exit, and set it to return to the Carribbean lair. He sent it in a direct line toward the Seniors' Island, then cloaked the machine so it couldn't be traced. He programmed in a special directive that Drakken couldn't override, and a small drone shot off, with some of the supplies, and a few of Dementor's inventions-he didn't need them, but they may be useful later. He did it carefully, and Drakken never knew that it happened.

From there, Zorpox stood up and turned to his co-conspirator. "There-now Kimberly Ann will think that the Seniors attacked Dementor, throwing even more confusion on the field." He studied the numbers on the screen again. "The professor had a lot of rocket fuel-that was almost half of what we needed. If you pick the rest up in small quantities, and ship them all over the world, to the launch sites, Kimberly will never know."

Drakken nodded, and Zorpox moved past him to the hall, his mind already on other matters. Let the mad doctor study what he was doing, hoping to learn. Zorpox knew that it was all beyond him-Drakken could make the simplest plans fail-a complicated one always meant he was doomed to failure. Despite this, Zorpox did try to make things as simple as possible-after all, he didn't want Drakken to mess _his_ plan up.

X X X X

As soon as Zorpox was gone, Drakken sat in his seat, then pulled up the robot controls. He turned off the autopilot, and made a small adjustment, sending the robot to a small island in the Pacific. He instructed the machine to find a specific location, and drop some of the supplies off. He had recently purchased a warehouse in the area, and wanted to keep things in separate locations.

The name on the deed was Shego's.

X X X X X X X X

Later that evening, Kim sat reclined on her bed, her head and feet dangling off the sides. She was looking down on the floor at her Kimmunicator, and Wade was staring back up at her. Kim had just gotten her homework out, and decided she could multi task and talk with Wade about the day's earlier mission.

"I just don't get it, Wade. Why would Dementor lie about framing Monkey Fist?"

Wade shrugged. "Why would he frame Monkey Fist in the first place? It's really weird."

"I know." Kim rolled over and pulled out a pencil, then noticed that it didn't have a point. She reached for another. "I mean, all of the villains just avoid each other normally-it's like an unwritten code or something."

Wade grinned. "'Paragraph 1, line 1-villains are not to attack each other unless there is a very good reason for it.' From Issue 97 of the Villain's League of Evil Villains. Did you know that they're all supposed to be based on real villains?"

"Very interesting, Wade." Kim said dryly. "Maybe the next one will be about Shego, the green clown of doom." She shook her head. "No, back to Dementor. He must have been using that to keep GJ off his back-they have been getting a little better, lately." Just a few weeks ago, Will Du had managed to save a senator from an untimely death-he prevented the man from walking into an open elevator shaft. And, of course, he'd somehow managed to stop Duff Kiligan-although the golfer had been unconscious.

Wade nodded, then looked at his computer in surprise. "Speaking of Will Du, he wants to talk to you, Kim. Should I just cut him off?"

Kim was very tempted, but she tried to be courteous to people-even if she didn't like them. She finally gave Wade a nod, indicating she would hear the agent out; soon Du appeared on screen. "Ah, Miss Possible-as prompt as ever." He somehow made it sound like an insult. "The Director felt that I should tell you Kiligan is awake-he named the person who attacked him." He seemed to pause, as if he was contemplating something very distasteful. His voice was quiet. "It appears you were correct, Killigan was not attacked by Monkey Fist."

Kim resisted the urge to stick her tongue out at him. "Gee, thanks for your call, _Agent_ Du. I really appreciate being kept in the loop-but I already know who attacked him."

"How could an amateur..." His eyes widened as he was cut off. Again. He turned to Dr Director, who was standing nearby. She had the slightest half-smile.

"Very good, Agent Du-you managed to insult her yet again. You certainly have a way with people." She walked away, leaving a very stunned and confused Will Du. He hadn't done anything wrong...had he?

X X X X

Kim let loose an angry growl, then laid back against her bed; no matter what he did, Will Du was able to push all of her irritation buttons at once. He was as bad as Bonnie. Kim took a deep breath, then let it out in a sigh. She finally looked back to her Kimmunicator. "Wade? Still there?"

"Yeah, I'm here, Kim." He hesitated, then asked Kim the big question on his mind. "So, uh, what did you think of the Wadebot?"

"It rocked, Wade. A shield, grapple arms, super strength, that thing is amazing!" She chased away a flitting thought that wished Ron was as useful. "You know, it would be nice to have something like that around all the time-you know, with me."

"Like a suit?"

Well, I was thinking another small robot, but a suit would be spankin'." She frowned. "What do you mean?"

She watched as her friend shrugged. "Just an idea I've been working on. You remember the Centurion Project?"

Kim grimaced and nodded. "How could I not?" She'd lied, sneaked around, gotten Ron captured, been caught, and had served a month of grounding-of course she remembered-it was not one of her finest moments.

"They've been working on the Centurion Project 2.0-lighter and more controlled-instead of directly acting to your stress, this system would work more off of your emotions-it's also being designed using a new material-super flexible and soft, yet rigid and hard as steel when necessary-they fired rockets and stuff at it to test it."

Kim shuddered. "Not sure I want to try that, Wade-but it sounds like a good idea-but there's always a catch."

He nodded. "It's still in the testing phases-it won't go into production for another year or two." Now he smiled slyly. "Of course, they owe us a favor for saving the first Centurion Project..."

She grinned back. "...so they'd be more than willing to let us try it out. Sounds like a good idea, Wade-how long will it take?"

The tech genius shrugged. "I don't know-it would be pretty easy to adapt some of the basic systems-like the grappler-but some of the other things will be more difficult. I'll have to completely design them from the bottom up-could take months." He watched as Kim's face fell-that was really too long to be useful. "Although, it's already designed with increased strength and limited flight capability-you could always test the suit out and I can add stuff as it gets finished."

"Wade, I don't tell you this enough-you rock."

He grinned back. "I try. Anyway, it'll still take me a few weeks to get the okay on this from the people over at the Centurion Project-so I'll start working on some of the upgrades." He looked back at his screens. "I'll also try to figure out where Dementor is going to strike next-we really don't want him to get that rocket fuel."

Kim frowned, then turned back to her book. She was getting ready to cut the call to Wade when an idea seemed to flit into her head. She looked at her friend. "Could you just look up the other villains and find out what they're doing too? Something just doesn't seem right about this-I feel like I'm missing something, something obvious." She closed her eyes in thought, but nothing came to mind. "Something's not right." She repeated, but was unable to figure out what.

Wade promised to get the information she wanted, then signed off. Kim went back to her homework, knowing that whatever the nagging info was, it would reveal itself in due time.

Hopefully before the villain struck.

X X X X X X X X

Zorpox sat in his room, frowning slightly. He has made a small oversight; Shego was much more tenacious than he though, going through the trash and finding the Haggis receipe. He figured that it was very unlikely that she could divine his plan from that small clue, but if she was even half as smart as Kim, it was an unnecessary risk. That said, even if she brought it to Drakken's attention, it didn't mean anything-he was a cook as well as a villain-maybe he was trying something new.

Secure in the knowledge that Shego still didn't have a clue what was going on, he sat at his computer, and began pulling up some files he would need. He had some more weapons and projects that he wanted to create, so that was the first order of business. The Electro-Static Generator was his first creation, a device that could be used to provide power for his super weapons and lairs-it's biggest advantage was the way it received power-through a manner undetectable by the super genius Wade.

Next came the Polar Regressor, a device that was really more of a novelty than an actual doomsday weapon-this device could in small scale effect the north and south poles of magnets, reversing them. In large scale applications, it could cause the actual flipping of the north and south poles on the planet. Finally he created a Selenium Phase Disruptor, to disable devices creating using the semiconductor.

Finished with the projects he had set aside, he looked over the blueprints of the different lairs that he had designed, and tried to figure out where exactly he wanted to place his newly designed super weapons. He was not as stupid as Drakken to try and place them all together-they would be spread out, placed into the areas that they would be the most useful, but not necessarily the most obvious. For example, while it would make sense to place the Polar Regressor near either the north or south pole, the villain planned to set it somewhere else entirely.

Also, Zorpox left room for some other creations that he had planed, but had not yet designed; he had plenty of ideas, but not a lot of time to draw up the blueprints-a few every night would be the best he could managed. Between Drakken, Shego, and the henchmen, he really didn't have that much time to himself. Fortunately, he had that all figure out for the next day-projects for Drakken, and pre-prepared food for the henchmen should give him a little more time to take care of things.

Shego, however, was a different problem entirely-she could be detrimental to his plans, if he wasn't able to counter her actions. He had some basic ideas on her-her character, her actions and thoughts, but in many ways she was still a mystery. He knew how to taunt her, to push all of her buttons so she wasn't thinking straight, but he really didn't know much about _her. _Surprisingly, he knew she couldn't be bought off, and he'd threatened her before-she wasn't likely to stay cowed. She was really an intriguing individual.

This, of course, led to the one key aspect of his plan not quite finalized. With a free day tomorrow, Zorpox let his mind wander, considering the mad doctor's sidekick. She was going to be key to his plan; or rather, her past would be key to what he wanted to do. Somewhere within her sordid history was the clue he needed, and he had to figure it out for his plan to have any chance for success.

He leaned back, considering the greatest question that he had-what, exactly, had made Shego go bad? He was sure that it wasn't as simple and clear cut as Hego had made it out to be-while she had begun to like the evil more and more, he got the feeling that there was more to it than just 'she likes it.'

Zorpox settled in, thinking of the advice that he had given Drakken-research was the key. Since it was unlikely that he could just outright ask how she went from hero to villain, he would have to go to the only other source of information-Go Tower. He chalked that up for the next day, as well as his visit to Jack Hench, and decided to call it a night. He was asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.

* * *

_**A/N **I particularly enjoy scenes between Zorpox and Shego, because they are always explosive. There's still quite a bit of conflict between those two in the next few chapters._

_Also, I'll mention, I made a pretty simple sketch of the scene with Shego and Zorpox in the cafeteria. Most of it's really basic, but I do like the shading and look on Zorpox, so check it out if you want. It's posted in my Deviant Art account. You might have to do a bit of digging, but it's in my scrapbook._


	10. Never Barter with a Villain

_**A/N **Still more hints in this chapter, including a few teasing hints of some other stories I have planned._

* * *

**Chapter 10: Never Barter with a Villain**

_(Tuesday Morning-Week 2)_

Zorpox was out of bed early the next morning, because he knew he had a lot he needed to get done. The first thing on his list was a long overdue visit to Hench Co. He quickly set out in a hovercar, then landed outside the large building. The blond walked in the front doors, then made his way up to Jack Hench's office. He stepped up to the reception desk. "I need to speak with Jack Hench."

"I'm sorry, he's in a meeting right now, can I take a message?"

Zorpox eyed her coolly. "No."

She seemed taken aback. "Okay...um, if you want to wait over there, I'm sure he'll be done in the next three or four hours."

The caped villain shook his head. "Too long, my dear." He walked past her, and cranked his laser up high. He stepped forward and blew the doors apart. The secretary just stuttered, then hit an alarm. Zorpox seemed unconcerned. He made his way down the hall, until a number of trap doors on the walls and ceiling opened up. His left hand drifted down to his belt, and pushed a small button, flicking on his shield.

The henchmen poured out, and quickly surrounded Zorpox. One of them, far bigger than the others, stood in front of the villain, and cracked his knuckles. It was his job to protect Hench, and he loved every minute of it. He motioned with his hand, and a number of henchmen tried to get to Zorpox, but they all bounced off the shield. Zorpox didn't even pause. He continued forward, and when the large henchman tried to block his way, he shot him with his laser, then walked over his unconscious body. He reached the end of the hallway and fired his laser again, through the shield, to blast a second set of doors. He stepped into Jack Hench's inner sanctuary.

The businessman was standing on his desk, a small blaster in his hand, pointing it downward toward a chair. Sitting in the chair was a blue dummy with a small scar under his eye. "I've had it with you, Drakken, always stealing from me. Take this!" He fired the weapon at the doll, punching a hole in it. "And this! And this!" He fired again and again, laughing crazily-then he noticed Zorpox. "Uh..." He hid the blaster behind his back and jumped off his desk. "Just...um...testing out this new weapon." He coughed into his hand and set the blaster on the table.

He looked at Zorpox, and all the guards in the hall, unconscious. He pushed a button and a second set of doors closed, separating Hench's office from the hallway. "What can I do for you...Mr..."

"Zorpox." The villain watched as Hench's eyes seemed to flicker at that name, but dismissed it.

"Zorpox...I don't believe I'm familiar with your work." Hench went and sat in his chair. "After your little demonstration, however, I'm willing to learn." He motioned that Zorpox should sit. The caped villain went over to the chair, looking down at the dummy sitting in it. He smirked and tilted the chair, dropping the doll out beside the desk, then sat down, leaning back and placing his feet on Hench's desk. The businessman glared at Zorpox angrily, but he ignored Hench.

"I need a lot of construction robots, and I need them today. I'm also in need of some other supplies." He pulled out a disk and threw it to Hench. The businessman placed the disk into his computer, and after scanning it for viruses, run the file. He read through the list and laughed.

"You expect me to get all of this for you by tomorrow-"

"Today."

"-today." Hench laughed. "Anything else you need-key to the President's office-a way into Area 51? Hey, maybe I can figure out what's in Shego's little leg pouch and get it for you."

The villain's eyes narrowed. "I don't like being mocked."

Hench leaned back in his chair. "I'm a businessman, Zorpox, not a miracle worker. I can get you some of this now, but you'll just have to wait for the rest. Tell you what-come back in a week, and I'll have most of it ready."

Zorpox took his feet off of Hench's desk, and stared at him. "Unacceptable."

The businessman just shrugged. "That's the best I can do. Unless..." He leaned in closer across the desk, trying to get the villain to feel like he was getting a good deal. Zorpox didn't budge, so he continued anyway. "I can get what you need, today, but it'll cost you-ten billion dollars."

The caped villain shook his head. "No, you can do it for half that easily-and that's still ripping me off. Four billion, or I see what your competition can do for me."

"You know that my competition can't get you what you need in time-otherwise you'd have gone to them first-eight billion, and I'll throw in a refurbished doomsday laser."

The blond sat back again. "Three and a half billion, and I'll tell you my plan-maybe you can sell it for something."

"Six billion, and I'll throw in a cape made of the finest silk I can find."

Zorpox's eyes gleamed. "Three billion, or I'll blow up your building."

Hench put his hands in the air. "Hold on, we're bartering here-your supposed to meet me in the middle-your prices are going down, not up. Five billion, my final offer." He leaned back-they both knew that it was really a good deal.

Zorpox narrowed his eyes, then spoke to him quietly. Hench had to strain his ears to hear. "You'll do it for two and a half billion dollars, and you'll like it."

"The only way I would do it for that price is if you killed Kim Possible." His eyes widened as Zorpox swiftly stood up and grabbed him by the collar. The villain dragged him across the desk, then over to his window, a large floor-to-ceiling glass pane. Zorpox easily lifted the businessman off his feet, then slammed him up against the glass. The window cracked.

"Don't...threaten...her!" The villain's eyes glinted eerily. "If you threaten her, you'll be outside that window looking in."

Jack Hench looked over his shoulder, at the nearly forty-story drop; it was a very long way to the ground. Panic flashed across his face. "All right, all right..." Hench gasped. "Tell you what-I'll lower the price, just for you-two and a half billion dollars."

"Ah, that's better." Acting as if nothing was wrong, Zorpox set him down. "Deliver them to the locations listed, in the quantities mention. At the bottom of the file is the account numbers you need." Zorpox walked over to Hench's door, then paused. He spoke without turning, his voice low and threatening. "If you try and cheat me, or place tracking chips on my equipment, I won't be so nice next time." Then he was gone.

Hench went back over and sat in his chair. This Zorpox was as bad as the real one. He sat heavily and adjusted his tie, then reached over for a small button on his desk. His secretary answered promptly. "Are you all right, sir?"

"Fine, fine." He readjusted his tie again. "Listen, I just got a rush order-needs to be done today...and Susan-leave off the tracking chips."

"Sir?"

He growled. "You heard me-leave off the tracking chips-I don't know who this guy is, but he's not the sort that would appreciate finding out we're tracking him." He clicked off the comm, then leaned back in his chair. And the day had started out so peaceful. On the bright side, he'd just made over a billion dollars profit, so it evened out.

X X X X X X X X

Tuesday. Kim always hated these middle-of-the-week days; it wasn't that there was anything particularly wrong about Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, but she just seemed to always be in such a rush. Sure, she liked the work, had in fact signed up for all the myriad things, but it was always so much to take care of. She barely had any time between classes, getting swarmed by people needing help with one thing or another.

In a small, subconscious part of her mind, Kim knew that it was going to be even worse this week, because Ron wasn't there to support her. Her may portray a slacker and total goof off, but he could be surprisingly supportive to her when she needed the help. She couldn't count the number of times Ron had been there to help her clean the park, or help her decorate for some school function or another. Kim may have received all the credit for all the things that got done for the school, but it was a team effort-and now without Ron, she would only be half as effective.

It was even worse than not having the help, however. Ron's other big contribution was in getting her to relax, even a little bit. Not even Kim realized how often he was distracting her, from one thing or another, giving a small break before some larger disaster loomed. Often she was so focused on some problem that he had, that she never had any time to freak out about all the things she had to deal with. He was, in effect, her outlet for frustration-his comical antics may have caused her no end of grief, but it was a relief from her pressure...a relief that she sorely needed now.

At the moment, she was being harried by a handful of students, as well as three teachers, all needing advice on some subject. Kim was not a patient woman by nature, so it took a lot of control to work with all these people, set them on the right tracks, and get things where they needed to be, without barking orders at them all the time. She felt like shooing them all off, but it wasn't in her nature to send people away who needed her help. Kim took a deep breath and dived into the problems.

Kim barely made it to her next class. Unsurprisingly, her next teacher was Mr Barkin; the man began lecturing as soon as the bell rang, throwing in the occasional question or two to the slackers, hoping to get their attention. Finally the adult finished, giving out a relatively simple assignment for the students to work on-at least, simple for her...Ron would be dreading it when he got back.

Finally the Lunch Period rolled around, and Kim made her way through the cafeteria line. She noticed that the cafeteria lady was dishing out some purple-colored mystery group, and the teen vowed to avoid it. To her utter shock, when the cafeteria lady turned her back, the spoon sitting in the bowl sizzled and melted into the pot. She bypassed the cafeteria food entirely, instead opting to swing by the vending machine for some snacks.

Just as she was sitting with her food, she saw that Monique had shown up. The fashion diva went through the line, grabbing a tray of food, then went to sit next to her friend. She poked at the food on her plate, then did the unthinkable-she flipped the tray upside down. Instead of splatting out on the table, the food stuck.

"I don't even want to think about what this is doing to my insides." Monique flipped the tray back around, then tried to decide if she really wanted to risk eating it. She watched four people dash by the table, making a bee line to the bathroom-she decided it wasn't worth it. "So, come up with anything on the hobby front?" Kim just stared at the table. "Nothing, huh?"

Kim passed a few crackers over to her friend, then shrugged, but wouldn't make eye contact. "Well, I guess I did take one of your ideas to heart..." She felt really hesitant to tell Monique she had tried to cook-her friend would totally freak.

"Well, come on girl, spill! TME-Tell me everything."

The teen hero bit her lip. "Lets just say that I'm on fire."

She received a suspicious stare. "On fire? I need more than that. Wait..." It clicked. "COOKING?"

Kim winced. "Not so loooud." She tried to hush her friend. "It's no big, really-just one thing I need to work on."

"Need to work on? Barkin needs to work on being quieter. Mrs Hatcher needs to work on being nicer. Ron needs to work on being smarter. You? This is way beyond need to work on. This is full blown death-by-cooking."

The besieged wanna-be chef rolled her eyes. "It's not that bad, really."

"Oh, so it's just a coincidence that the budget for home ec happened to be four time as high as the entire sports budget."

"Well, they had forgotten about the class for a couple of years..."

"Kim, girl, they spent more in a week on fire extinguishers than the fire department does in a year! Not to mention they had to rebuild the room three times."

"Four." She mumbled quietly.

"...four times. I still don't know how you managed to pass that class."

Kim just shook her head. "Without Ron, I would have failed. Monique, don't you see-I'm Kim Possible, I can do anything..." She spoke with determination. "And that includes cooking-I'll just have to work at it." Now she looked down. "I've...um, I've kinda got a favor to ask."

Monique gave her a look that said 'not if your life depends on it.' "This better not be what I think it is, girl. Don't matter if Pain King himself was to put the beat down on me-I'd rather take that than risk your kitchen."

"Aww, come on, it'll be fun."

Her friend rolled her eyes. "Seriously, girl, your idea of fun is totally messed up. Me?" She placed a hand on her chest. "Shopping, and looking good-I don't go much for the certain death thing."

Kim crossed her arms and protested. "None of my missions are that dangerous."

Monique played with her fork. "Missions, no, but you in the kitchen..." she pointed the fork "...certain death."

The redheaded teen seemed ready to drop the subject, then she grinned at her friend, causing Monique to frown: she'd never seen her friend give up on anything that quick-something was up. What she didn't know was that Kim had one last weapon in her arsenal that had proven quite effective. The fashion diva finally looked up from the fork, to see her friend, eyes wide, lower lip out in a pout that would have melted a block of glacial ice. "Puh-weese?"

Monique tried resisting it, she really did, but it was already a lost battle. She raised the fork to point it at her current foe. "No. No way you're using that on me." Kim held the pose, and finally her friend dropped her head and sighed. "Fine-but you owe me big, you hear. And trust me, when I cash in on this favor, you're gonna regret pulling that on me."

A bright smirk quickly covered her face. "To borrow a phrase: booyah!"

Monique jumped on the change of subject. "Speaking of Ron, have you heard anything new from Chef Boy?"

Kim shook her head. "No, but that's actually probably a good sign-you know how he talks about how he hated Wannaweep? Well, he ended up calling his mom like five or six times an hour-in this case, no news is good news-he must be enjoying himself."

Monique stared at the dripping, gooey mess that was her food, fearing even worse things in the night to come. "I'm glad someone is."

X X X X X X X X

Zorpox was enjoying himself. With the supplies acquired from Henchco, he should be able to make a number of secret lairs. The locations he had the stuff delivered to weren't even close to where he really wanted it to go, so Kimberly wouldn't be able to track him through Jack Hench. He thought about the businessman-it had really been enjoyable, threatening him. All the times that his equipment had been used against her, it was about time someone gave him a little payback. If things worked out, he might have to pay Hench another visit...

By the time he got back from his little early morning trip, it was already just after lunch time. He knew the henchmen had the food that they would need so he didn't stay very long, just long enough to get a few supplies that he would need. He checked on Drakken, noting that the doctor was still working; Shego was in the lab, questioning the mad scientist. Zorpox moved closer, to eavesdrop, and soon could hear her raised voice. "What do you mean you don't know where he is? For all you know, he could be blabbing everything to Kim Possible right now! And what else are you doing here?" She leaned in closer to look over the blue doctor's shoulder.

From just outside their view, Zorpox grinned. It appeared that she hoped she could glean some information to use against her caped foe-unlikely, and the villain grinned as Shego flared her hands up, fried something nearby, and stormed off in a huff. If there was one thing she couldn't stand, it was surprises.

The caped villain quickly headed back toward the hovercraft; he decided it was time for the next thing on the agenda-study Shego. Zorpox knew that he could beat Shego, but it was always a good idea to get as much info on your foes as you can-and where better to get info about Shego than from her old home. He knew plenty about her current life of villainy, but was curious about the time that she'd been a hero-and since Drakken didn't have any information, Go City it was. Zorpox got into his hovercraft and set his course. A short time later, he set his hover car down on a small island in the middle of the city.

He got out, then looked up at the tall tower. Go Tower-the 'ultimate fortress of goodness.' Zorpox grinned at the thought. If everything went according to plan, after his visit, Hego would still think that. His belt was on, jamming all the cameras; knowing Hego, they would just tack it off as a slight technical problem. He strolled over to door, then looked at it. It was just a handprint scanner, but this one was more than it seemed. Zorpox realized it was really an ingenious design-all of the superheros of Team Go had their own power-that created energy. The handprint scanner was really nothing more than an outlet for them to power the door. Without the power, the door stayed closed and sealed-and the door used energy of a type that Zorpox had never seen before.

He frowned, then remembered something. When Team Go had lost their powers to Aviarius, Hego had been able to open the door from the inside of Go Tower-that meant that there was another way to power the door. He pulled out a scanner he'd borrowed from Drakken, and ran it over the panel. The screen stayed blank, and Zorpox growled. Either this was a scan-proof console, or Drakken's equipment was on the fritz again-either way, the scanner was a piece of junk. He put it back in his bag, then peered closely at the wall.

He could try cutting through and just forcing his way in, but then Team Go would know he'd been here-and he didn't want that. Hot wiring things wouldn't work, because he still wouldn't have the power he needed. Power. He thought about that word, and an idea came to mind-it was a long shot, but still worth trying. He held his hand out in the air, then focused on it-could he use his Mystical Monkey Power the same way that Shego used the Go glow?

He closed his eyes and thought hard, and felt a slight tingling in his hand. He opened his eyes, but didn't see anything different about his hand. He focused harder, but could feel something in the back of his mind, preventing him from accessing the power. He finally realized that it was the bumbling sidekick Ron, clamping down on the Mystical Monkey Power.

_Ron? Is that you? _He chuckled, waiting for an answer, but he heard nothing. It was just as well-if the buffoon got the idea that he could talk to Zorpox, he might get the idea that he could fight back. Zorpox placed his hand against the panel and concentrated hard, and finally felt a tingling. He opened his eyes, and watched as his hand briefly flashed blue, causing the door to slide open. He threw himself through just before it closed.

Once inside, he tried to take a step, but fell to his knees, instead. He was exhausted, he hadn't realized how much it took to fight Ron. A buffoon he may be, Ron still had more fight in him than anyone except Kim herself-maybe even more than her. Zorpox knew he couldn't try that again, accessing the Mystical Monkey Power was too dangerous-Ron might be able to paralyze him, or even make him lose consciousness. On the other hand, Zorpox could still use Tie Xing Pek War, since it was an instinctive knowledge, not directly tied into the power. That would have to be enough.

After a brief rest, Zorpox felt strong enough to continue his mission. He stealthily moved down the halls, sticking to the shadows, careful in case someone from Team Go should show up. He made his way to the central command room, then over to the giant screen. It was actually a large computer, packed full of information about Team Go, as well as all the villains they had fought. He brought up the files, curious.

There was a number of villains, some he hadn't heard of, like Electronique and Mathter, and the one he had heard of, Aviarus. Zorpox was surprised to come across a file on Jack Hench-it appeared that before he was a businessman, he'd actually tried to take over the world a couple of times. Zorpox downloaded the files-you never know when something like this could come in handy. As he was downloading to his belt's microcomputer, he heard it make a small beep. He started to look down, but heard voices coming his way.

He dashed out into the hallway, looking for a door to sneak into, but the voices kept getting closer. Finally, he ran sideways, then planted his feet on the wall, kicking off to reach the ceiling. He grabbed a hold of a metal beam running across, and pulled himself up. He had just barely gotten there when Hego and Mego walked underneath him, arguing about something. Ironically, they both paused underneath him.

Zorpox slowly reached into his pocket, and pulled out Drakken's scanner. He lowered it down, just over their heads, and turned it on. Fortunately it activated silently, and immediately started analyzing them. Within seconds, he had gotten everything he needed-hopefully, with this, he could go about duplicating Team Go's powers...and if not, well, it wasn't part of his plan anyway-but Zorpox wasn't one to give up any sort of advantage he could get. If he could find a way of copying their powers...or at worst jamming them, he would have a distinct advantage.

It was just as he was thinking this that his hand slipped. He started to fall, but braced himself, wedging himself painfully in the corner. He stretched his legs out to get the leverage he needed, and it was enough for now...then his leg started to cramp up. He closed his eyes and ignored the pain, waiting as long as he could. Just when he thought he couldn't hold out any longer, the pair beneath him moved on, and as soon as they were out of sight, he gasped and dropped.

Zorpox landed hard, his chest and stomach hitting the ground. He gasped again, then rolled over and tried to take a breath. After a couple of false starts, he finally got enough air to move. He got to his feet, and considered what to do next. He still wanted to visit Shego's old room, and if possible scan the twins, but didn't know if they would be here or not. Finally he decided nothing ventured, nothing gained, and made his way upstairs to the rooms.

He made his way to Shego's room first, and realized he had a problem. There was another hand print scanner on the door-and this one left no doubt that only Shego could work it. The green scanner almost looked out of place on the smooth walls, but considering Shego's concern for privacy, it made sense. He frowned-there was absolutely no way he could get in there without setting off an alarm. He'd just have to use what he'd already gotten from the computer, and hope it would have enough info about her.

He turned, then walked down the hall looking for the twins room. Fortunately, this door didn't have a lock, and after checking for anyone inside, Zorpox opened it. It turned out the twins shared a room, a large bunk bed placed in a corner. It looked like the twins weren't here, so he wasn't going to get a chance to scan them...unless...

Zorpox went over to the bunk bed and lifted the bottom mattress up, then pulled out his laser and used it to cut a small square in the base of the wood. He took out Drakken's scanner and set it in the hole, pointing it upward. He dropped the mattress on top, and after checking to see that it could scan through it, left the room. Whenever the twins got back, the machine would scan them, and Zorpox would have the last members of Team Go scanned; a relay would then transmit that information to him. He slipped out of the building, and was quickly gone.

X X X X X X X X

10

...9

...8

...7

...6

...5

...4

...3

...2

...1

...BRINGGGG

Monique watched the countdown from her desk in the back, waiting for the inevitable freedom that came with the end of the day. She waited until half the class had made their way to the door, squeezing through on their way out. She quickly joined the group, hoping that the other students would help to cover her escape.

True, Monique had made a promise to Kim to help with the cooking, but she really felt no compulsion to stick around for the red-headed teen. She had only agreed to help under duress, and there wasn't a judge in the country that would support little miss 'puppy dog pout' over Monique. Even so, she knew once she was out of the building, she'd be home free. Kim almost always had cheerleading practice, so as long as Monique didn't get roped into going, she could easily get out of the action.

Now, all she had to do was sign up for overtime at Club Banana-to last until Ron got back.

She debated heading back to her locker to drop her books off, but realized it was an unnecessary risk-chances were Kim would be waiting until Monique showed up-no, better to take her books and run. Unfortunately, it seemed that there was some sort of after school get together thing in the cafeteria-so almost three-fourths of the student body was there, instead of leaving the building; that cut her cover down severely.

Finally, once she was sure the coast was clear, she made a mad dash toward the main doors. Barkin was no where in sight, so she ran practically full out, only slowing long enough to push open the main doors instead of charging into them. She breathed a great sigh of relief when she realized that Kim wasn't waiting outside for her-the teen must have gotten stuck in cheer practice.

Monique, however, failed to take one thing into account-if three quarters of the student body had decided to go to the event after school, chances were many of the cheerleaders had backed out of practice. As it was, Kim decided to call the entire thing off-so she was leaning against the school wall when Monique came out-and the fashion conscious teen missed Kim when she opened the door. She managed all of three steps out from the school before she was ambushed.

"Are you trying to sneak out so you don't have to help me cook?"

"Me?" Monique squeaked, even as she tried to come up with some sort of excuse. "No, girl, I was just in a hurry to get this all done, you know? Figured I'd head straight to your house to help you cook."

The red head's grin was decidedly superior. "Nice try, except Ron and I usually leave by the west entrance."

Now her friend was babbling frantically. "I-I uh, just needed to head home first." She looked down, finally noting the books in her hands-she held them up. "I need to take these home, lots of work and all."

"Right." She snatched the topmost object from Monique's arms and held it up. "New class: Fashion 101?" The magazine had a woman wearing a large, pink poofy dress.

"Alright, fine." She snarled, snatching the magazine out of Kim's hands. "I was trying to ditch you, okay? I plan on living to the ripe old age of ninety five, and if I step in your kitchen, I'll never make it past twenty."

Kim grabbed Monique's hand, quickly pulling her friend behind her. "Well then, it's a good thing we're not going to my house, isn't it?" She sing songed. "We're going to your house."

The horror of the situation finally struck Monique. "No! No, no, no, no, no way, girl, no how. Just because you've wrecked your kitchen doesn't mean mine's next."

The puppy dog pout was back in full force. "I promise I'll be extra careful. Besides we have Rufus to help us, right?" An almost unnoticed movement by Kim's leg caught Monique's eye; as she looked down, she spotted Rufus peaking out at her. The small little mole rat barely stuck his head out of Kim's leg pocket, his eyes full of fear. The dark haired women didn't even want to know what horror stories he could tell.

The dark haired girl just grumbled. "You don't treat Ron like this."

Kim grinned gleefully. "Sure I do, he always goes along with whatever I say." She bounced from foot to foot. "Come on."

Monique just mumbled under her breath. "Ron was right, perky is so overrated."

X X X X X X X X

Drakken considered the screen in front of him. He'd taken care of the things that Zorpox said he would need to; the plan was perfectly on schedule. In fact, according to what he'd done, it looked to be ahead of schedule slightly, and as such, Drakken wanted to work on something else as well-something he wouldn't tell the other villain about.

The blue villain grinned to himself, looking the plans over-yes, everything was in order, and hopefully, this would give him everything he needed. He bent forward over his table, comparing his diagrams with the equipment directly in front of him; he started putting the pieces together. He had actually ordered the items just as soon as he had gotten back from visiting a weapons supplier.

He looked at the pieces and parts spread out before him, considering how he wanted to put everything together; he wouldn't want to make an incorrect constructions, or his entire project could reach a catastrophic end-and that would spell pain for one Dr Drakken. He considered things carefully, looking back and forth over his shoulder and around. He knew that if Zorpox realized what he had spent the money on, the caped villain would be less than pleased.

Drakken couldn't let Zorpox find out what he was doing.

X X X X X X X X

As soon as Kim and Monique had reached the fashion diva's home, Kim tried to take over. "First thing I want to try..." Kim began.

"Nope." Monique waved her finger in Kim's face. "Let's make things clear, right now. As long as we are working in my kitchen, I call all the shots, you get me? Soon as some blue villain comes though that door with a laser, you're on-until then, I am the almighty queen of the kitchen."

"Fine." Kim ground her teeth together. "So, what're we going to do first, oh wise 'queen of the kitchen'?"

"Okay..." Monique looked her friend up and down, and Kim unconsciously twisted around, looking at herself. "...Let's start with something simple-can you make a sandwich?"

"...Sandwich?" Kim rolled her eyes. "Please, I'm here to cook, not slap some bread and meat together."

Monique was put off by Kim's attitude. With an almost evil grin, she nodded back. "Fine, here you go." She pulled the supplies out, and Kim balked.

"Wait, you said a sandwich-what am I supposed to do with this?"

Laid out before the teen was a midsized ham, as well as a small turkey breast. To complete Kim's confusion, a whole loaf of bread sat there as well. With a wide grin, Monique set down two large knives for cutting the bread and meat. "Well, miss I-can-do-anything, make a sandwich."

"But...but..."

Monique finally took pity on her. "Look, if I'm going to have any chance at helping you cook, I need to know how much you know-can you cut things without cutting yourself? Do you even know what do with this stuff?" Kim looked down at the knives, and Monique mistook her hesitation for concern. "Don't worry, the knives are fairly sharp, but if you're careful, you shouldn't cut yourself."

Kim glared at her friend, then picked one knife up. She deftly spun it in her hand, twirling it around, then flipping it into the air where it spun a couple of times before she caught it expertly. She looked at Monique and spoke coolly. "I know how to handle a knife."

As Kim went at the food, however, it quickly became apparent that she didn't know how to use a _kitchen_ knife. She began hacking at the bread, mangling it fairly well as the blade seemed to jump around in her hand. Finally she grabbed the bread in a death grip, and managed to saw through it. She cut a second slice, then stepped back to admire her handiwork.

Monique spoke, dryly. "I think it's dead now." The slices were cut almost at a diagonal, with part of the bread thicker on one end than the other. The...hunk that Kim had cut from was now a misshapen lump, with finger marks permanently indented in the crust.

Kim stuck her tongue out at her friend, then started working on the ham. Her skill was a little better cutting the meat, but again she angled the blade, making it thick on one end and thin on the other. She didn't have much better luck with the turkey. Frustrated, Kim took the two slices of meat and slammed them down onto her sliced bread, finally throwing the top on to make a tilted sandwich. She glared at Monique, daring the other teen to comment.

Monique laughed, while her friend looked on in disgust. "Well, baby girl, I can see that we've got a lot of work ahead of us."

X X X X X X X X

It didn't take Zorpox long to get back from his trip to Go City, and after getting back, the villain had retired straight to his room, closing and locked his door tightly behind him-he did not want to be disturbed. He wanted a chance to analyze the files he'd just stolen, and didn't need any green villainesses making his job that much harder. Only now did he remember the beep that he had received. He plugged his microcomputer in and downloaded the files, then brought them up.

He hadn't been able to look at everything in Go Tower, so there were a number of files he hadn't seen yet. The first set he pulled up looked like descriptions of some of Team Go's past missions-interesting, but not really what he was looking for. Next there was a list of where all the villains were currently, be it prison, paroled, or in hiding-again interesting but not really useful. Then he hit the jackpot. There were tons of files written by Hego, a journal of sorts. He kept looking and came across another for the twins, and one for Mego-but Shego's was suspiciously absent.

He checked all the files, but her entries weren't there. A deeper search revealed that they had been deleted. He frowned, leaning back in his chair. It seemed likely that Shego had intentionally deleted them herself-you couldn't be this thorough without a purpose in mind. He pulled up a couple of Hego's entries to see if he talked about Shego, but most of it was just basic stuff-who did what in the fight against a villain. He was just about to close the files when he noticed something strange.

Hego always entered his messages weekly-there was no variance-and yet there seemed to be a couple of missing entries. Zorpox checked, and they had been deleted as well-same for the other members of Team Go. It was all very mysterious. Zorpox checked some of the logs after the missing portion, and really couldn't find anything interesting. He'd just about given up when he came across a short paragraph that stuck in his mind.

_Shego attacked Mego again, and this time knocked him out. She's always been a little...volatile...but this is getting out of hand. She hasn't been the same after what happened two months ago. Not even Elizabeth has been able to get her to talk about it. It's like she's a different person._

Zorpox shook his head. _Elizabeth? _And what happened two months before this entry? Zorpox thought that name sounded familiar, but couldn't remember from where. He clicked the computer off in disgust. Whatever happened, he wouldn't find it in these files, and he seriously doubted Shego would keep it here where someone could find it. As much as he hated to, Zorpox knew he would just have to chalk it up as a mystery not to be explained.

_Well, that was a waste of six hours. _Zorpox sighed, then considered what to do next. His plan hinged on figuring out the details of Shego's past-but it seemed like that was now impossible to do. Whatever her life had been like before being a villain, it was now nothing more than forgotten history. He frowned, sitting back-this could derail his entire plan-another set of action was required.

He frowned, considering momentarily, then stood up, deciding that he would do things the old fashioned way-just go out and ask her. He stood, then left the room, intent on looking for the green villainess. It didn't take him long to find her, alone in the cafeteria, a sour look on her face.

Zorpox came up behind her, quietly, then tapped her on the shoulder. She shrieked and spun around, her glowing hands raised to fight and defend herself. The villain just cocked his head to the side and smirked at her. "Did I scare you, my dear? My bad."

Her eyes dark, she let her glow power dim. "Don't touch me, Zorpox. No, you didn't scare me, I was just busy with something else." She frowned, belatedly realizing that he would quickly figure out what she was doing.

He moved around her, to look at the table. He grinned. "So, Shego, it's true-no one can resist my cooking, not even you." Sitting out was one of the pre-made meals that he had prepared for the henchmen for the day. Even having to be heated, the food was infinitely better than anything else in the lair. He turned back to her. "Enjoying yourself?"

She just glared at him. "What do you want, Zorpox? I know you didn't just come here to inquire about my eating habits."

"What, you don't think I care about all of the employees, even the...healthy ones?" He pointedly looked at her midsection. "Ah well, no matter. Yes, I did have a question for you."

"Really?" She looked at him, carefully considering. "What?"

"Well, Shego, here's what I really want to know. Why, exactly, did you go evil-was it because of your annoying brothers? I know Hego said that you 'liked evil more' but I don't buy that-there's more to it, isn't there? Why was he so surprised that you were working with Drakken, someone trying to take over the world, but he wasn't surprised that you were evil? It almost seemed like he was surprised that you would work with anyone for any length of time."

She glared at him. "This is none of your business."

The caped villain smirked. "Now you're just being touchy. Come on, just between us villains." He reached his hand out in what was supposed to be a supportive gesture. Instead, her eyes narrowed.

"Move your hand, or I'll remove it permanently." He pulled it back, pausing just long enough to indicate to her that he was doing so because _he_ wanted to. The temperature in the room had dropped into the sub-zero. Shego spoke icily. "I think that it's time for me to leave." She stood and turned, but Zorpox wasn't quite ready to let the subject drop.

"Coward."

She turned, her eyes no longer a dark jade, instead an angry luminescent green. "What did you say?"

"I didn't stutter." He said, mock serious. "I called you a coward. You've got two ways to combat a problem-hit it head on, or run with your tail tucked between your legs. Well, Shego, looks to me like you may be green on the outside, but inside-you're yellow."

She moved quickly, pinning him to the wall, a single hand gripping his throat; his feet dangled in the air. "Take it back." She hissed.

He just grinned, even as his air supply diminished. He spoke through a tight throat. "No-and you know why? Because if you kill me here, we'll both know that I died beating you-and you can't stand that, can you, Shego dear? Besides..." his eyes flashed dangerously as he took the biggest gamble of his life. "...you're never killed anyone before, and you're not about to start with a high schooler who doesn't know his place."

She finally dropped him. "Maybe you're just not worth killing."

He wouldn't even give her the satisfaction of rubbing at his throat. "We both know that's not true-Ron may not be worth much, but think of what it'll do to little Kimberly Ann."

She seemed to consider him, before finally shaking her head. "No, even if I did, it wouldn't count. I want to beat her, fair and square-not because her sidekick took a dive. Trust me, one day, I'll take you both on."

"Don't worry, you'll get your chance." She started to turn her back, but Zorpox smirked and continued speaking. "But don't forget the old saying, Shego. 'Be careful what you wish for..'" The villain's smile didn't reach his eyes. "'..you just might get it.'"

Her hand was back up, her finger leveled at his face. "You don't scare me, Zorpox. You or Kimmie."

Zorpox casually batted the hand away. "Don't you know it's not nice to point?"

She looked at him in disbelief, completely shocked that he had just blatantly knocked her hand away. "Not nice? NOT NICE?" She clenched her arms at her side, the glow actually extending to engulf her entire forearm.

The caped villain took a half step back in surprise. "That's new..." he commented, slightly alarmed. He mused out loud. "Simmer down, Shego, that can't really be healthy." She raised her arms up, baring her claws, her posture threatening, her body vibrating with repressed rage.

Her voice was a soft growl that belied her anger. "When I'm through with you, all that's left is going to be a scorched outline on that wall."

He brought himself up to this full height, a match for her own. "Then if that's how you feel, I believe an apology is in order." She hesitated, and after a moments thought, was able to dampen her glow power until it just shimmered around her hands. "I'm sorry if I caused offense-but, as you know, I just want to learn, and you happen to be something that I can learn about. If you want, I will avoid you entirely."

"No." Finally reining in her anger, she realized that if the villain set out to stay away from her, she may never get the information she needed to protect herself and Drakken. As much as she loathed the contact with him, Shego know that spending time with her blond foe would be the best way to figure out what he was doing, and what he was planning. "I...accept you apology, Zorpox." She leveled a finger at his face, again, and wisely the caped villain didn't comment. "But don't you ever say any of this again, or we'll collect your remains with a dustpan, capiche?"

"Understood loud and clear, Shego." He paused. "Well, hopefully, out future discussions won't be nearly as violent."

Shego doubted it.

X X X X

Zorpox made his way back to his room, and as soon as he slipped inside, he let his facade slip. He leaned back against his door, a slight frown coming to his face as he tried to relax his body. He was tense after the standoff with Shego, and still uncertain about her. It was now quite obvious to him that there was probably no way that he would be able to get the information he needed from Shego-instead, he would have to plan things out to occur in a different way.

He realized it was getting later in the evening, so he decided to devote himself to other matters-specifically more super weapon designs.

The first item he designed was rather easy to create; it was based upon the holo-technology that Wade had developed and tested over a year ago. While there had always been a few bugs in the system, Zorpox had a way to fix some of the flaws; Wade was trying to come up with a device that would make moving holograms, but all the villain wanted was a way to hide things, keep them hidden from vision and satellite technology. He created a Visual Suppression Field, to keep areas of land invisible.

Next came the Atmospheric Regulator; it was basically an updated version of his Mega Weather Generator. Zorpox preferred having fine control of things, being able to make minute adjustments to his plans, and that's what this weapon would give him. While the Mega Weather generator was a powerful weapon, it was a cleaver, large and unwieldy; the Atmospheric Regulator was a way to fine tune that control, to use a scalpel instead.

The third device he made was rather unique, even from many of the other things that he had created. He called the device the Gnome-inator, for no other reason that it made the device seem like something it was not. Last mother's day, Ron had been cleaning out the garage, and the hated lawn gnome had shown its head; just as Ron was going to throw it away, a ghostly voice came from the ceramic figurine. Wade was able to use a high frequency amplification to send sound waves through the figure.

He had, in effect, found a way to turn every lawn gnome in the world into a speaker system, a way to send signals around the world.

Zorpox didn't really have a use for the device yet; while there was the obvious options of using it to send a mind control signal, or some other similar audio feed, the villain preferred thinking outside the box-he wanted this device to have a unique use. Besides-according to Zorpox's thinking, taking over the world by mind control was cheating; if he were to take over the world-not that he wanted to-he would want to do it in a way that let everyone know he was smarter, had done more planning. In short, in wouldn't be about taking over the world per se, but about proving his superior intellect.

As Zorpox turned in for the night, though, he did know one thing-whenever Kim Possible was involved, nothing was guaranteed.

X X X X X X X X

Monique spent the next few hours working with Kim on some basic skills, such as cutting and measuring-which Kim assured her friend she could do. Kim was actually adequate at measuring things, although it did take her a while to get used to the odd measurements; since the teen hero traveled all around the world, she was actually more familiar with metric measurements, and this gave her a little difficulty. Fortunately, as always, she was a quick study, and by the end of the evening, Monique pronounced her ready for the next tasks...tomorrow.

The redhead's fiery temper quickly burst to the forefront, and Kim demanded that they continue-however Monique wouldn't be moved. Finally Kim left, grumbling all the way home. About halfway home, she realized that she had been trying to force the issue again, and that Monique was right-they needed to take things slowly. Besides, this would probably give her friend some time to get ideas.

Feeling quite a bit better, about herself and her friend, Kim made a mental note to apologize in the morning, and take some more time tonight to look over the cooking book she had. It was still rather early in the evening, so Kim pulled out some of her homework to work on, reading a few chapters of the book that Barkin had assigned-she wanted to keep a head of the curve if she could.

After spending an hour reading, she finally threw the book down, disgusted. Sure, it was interesting enough, but it really wasn't the type of book that she wanted to read. She sat up and frowned to herself, for a moment wondering what type of book she _did_ like to read. In actual fact, she hadn't read a book-book in a very long time-usually she had fashion magazines and things that she read. As she pulled the cooking book out from it's hiding space, she vowed to check a new book out when she returned this one to the library.

As she flipped through some of the early pages, she realized that there was a section on different cutting techniques...and she was very surprised to realize how many different techniques there were. Kim's friend had only gone over the basics, the skills that were needed to just cut stuff up to make it smaller-there were dozens of other ways to cut things. Brunoising, Chiffonading and Julienning, she could spend a lifetime just figuring that one thing out about cooking. She decided that they really weren't as important, since they were listed as 'advanced' knife techniques-all she needed right now were the basics.

She looked at some other different sections in the book, taking note of things that she figured might be important. When she finally looked at her clock, she realized that it was getting rather late-she decided to call it a night, quickly tucking the book away. Kim spent the next few minutes getting ready for bed, then slipped under her covers. As she laid down, she was glad that she had someone confident like Monique to help her with the cooking-it helped to ease her mind. Within seconds, she was asleep, exhausted from her long day.

Across town, however, one raven haired teen couldn't get to sleep; she was terrified of what would come in the days ahead.

* * *

_**A/N** Well, another chapter down, and this puts things right at about the halfway mark-at least in chapters, some of the later chapters are longer than the earlier ones. Not a whole lot of action in this chapter, but another chapter or two, and things will start to heat up._


	11. Proactive

_**A/N **Still a few more hints, and setting the plan in motion._

_And thanks to Eddy13 for beta reading._

* * *

**Chapter 11: Proactive**

_(Wednesday Morning-Week 2)_

Early the next morning, Zorpox went to the secondary lab, and began working on actually creating one of the devices he had designed over the last few days. It took an hour or so to get all the parts and make the devices; once he was finished, he looked at some of his other projects. He pushed some of the things away, knowing that Drakken wouldn't know what they were for. Others he slipped inside a drawer and locked-the mad scientist _would_ know what they were. After he had cleared the desk, he grabbed the half dozen small machines that he had made and looked them over; he would need them shortly.

He picked one up, studying its design. It was a small, portable holographic projector. Similar in design to the one that Wade had made, this one housed a power and computer system as well as the projector-each device could operate independently, and could shield an area the size of a football field. He had actually taken the designs Wade had used and upgraded them; the then-ten year old scientist had shown Ron the plans, even though the buffoon couldn't hope to comprehend them-Wade had even gone on and explained it, though it meant nothing to Ron. Zorpox, however, had profited from the lesson.

Zorpox knew the best way to protect something was to make sure that no one even knew it was there-why spend outlandish money trying to design a defense system to keep Kim Possible out? It was impossible. But if she didn't even know it was there-well, then the defenses are a lot better. He chuckled. _Oh yes, you cannot fight that which you cannot find...can you, Kimberly Ann?_

X X X X

After he had finished creating the holoprojectors, Zorpox placed them inside a box, then he went down to Drakken's hanger and picked what he now considered his personal hovercraft. He actually smiled as he saw it. It was still in the same place that it had always been, but there had been some changes to the machine. He walked down to it, then traced his hand along the side, grinning. When he had left it the day before, it had been like all the others-a drab blueish gray, ugly but utilitarian. Now it was a thing of beauty.

The hovercar had been painted a dark black color, but sported a long yellow stripe around the center-it ran horizontally all the way around. On both sides, ninety degrees from the front, large crimson Z's had been painted inside a stylized circle. The machine had been waxed repeatedly, and it now gleamed, even in the dark hanger. Even the upholstry inside the hovercar had been replaced; it was black as well, with the Z emblem painted on the headrest. Zorpox walked around the hovercar, admiring it before he head a voice behind him. He turned.

Five of Drakken's henchmen stood there, watching Zorpox. The one in the lead was the one that had originally confronted him about the awful cook. "We were so thankful for what you did, sir, that we felt we should do something in return. Do you like it?"

Zorpox nodded. "It's wonderful." He was genuinely touched. "You did this?"

They all nodded, and the lead man spoke again. "All of the men helped, sir. We got it done last night-the paint just dried." With nothing else to say, the men left. Zorpox spent another ten minutes looking the craft over. While most of the men looked clumsy and inept, when they put their mind to it, they could be very, very good. Zorpox vaulted up into the seat and grinned-now it was time to see if Jack Hench had delivered on his promise. He set the small package in the seat next to him, then set course for his first stop.

X X X X X X X X

Wednesday. Kim rolled her eyes as she got out of bed, slowly stretching and bending her body backwards; while most of the time Kim hated Wednesdays, today she was actually looking forward to it. Most of the time, when Wednesday came around, she was run ragged from the start of the day to the finish. Today, she had to make sure that the yearbook was on schedule, because a few of her classmates had been out of school for different activities, taking pictures at sports games, field trips, and a number of other things. Kim had to check over the pictures, approve the ones she wanted, and make sure all of the other activities were being covered.

Secondly, prom was coming up soon; she had to plan everything out, making sure to take care of the decorations, all the food and drinks, and even check over the selection of songs that would play. She was pretty much on track for the first two tasks, and she intended to talk with Monique sometime to help her plan the songs. This meant that all she really had to do for the prom committee was make sure things stayed on task-not always easy with so many people.

In all, however, this made Kim look forward to her day; she would be so busy that she would have no chance to miss Ron-she probably wouldn't have a second to herself. After reviewing all these activities, she quickly went through her morning workout routine-between cheer leading, school, and freak-fighting, early morning and late evening were the only real times she had to practice her skills, and she took extra pride in being able to work out like this every morning, keeping herself in shape. The teen tried to work in every different style of Kung Fu that she knew, blending one action straight into another, learning to work them in as seamlessly as possible.

As she worked from one style into the next she felt her thoughts drifting back to Ron. She knew that he had some sort of skill with...something. She wasn't really sure that she believed in his Mystical Monkey Power, but she did have to admit that she had seen some amazing things out of him, things that she would never have expected out of her slacker best friend. Especially when she considered her own skills, and that of some of the foes she faced, Kim knew her best friend had his own set of skills, as she learned on many occasions. She idly wondered why she had never tried to teach him any Kung Fu.

She wasn't a master or teacher by any means, but that didn't mean that she couldn't try and help him learn something, even just some simple grabs and throws. She had plenty of experience with her skills, and she was confident that she could keep her instances of 'Coach Possible' to a minimum. That sitch had taught her that her hyper competitiveness wasn't always good, and sometimes it was more about having fun, and teaching the things that were needed, than about winning. She figured he might benefit from her experience.

On the other hand, Ron was supposedly some sort of master of Monkey Kung Fu-or at least, that's what he'd told her after she had gotten the whole information on his visit to the Yamanuchi school. She still thought he was exaggerating things-it sounded like he'd managed to beat some sort of ninja dropout, and that Monkey Fist had been scared off by the other ninjas-she wasn't sure where this 'warrior hero' bit came from. She supposed that maybe that just came from Yori.

Kim gritted her teeth. Just thinking about that...ninja seductress make her anger grow. Who was she to try and draw Ron's attention? As far as Kim knew, the two of them had only known each other for a week, maybe two tops! Yet that ninja teen had been openly flirting with Ron, acting like she was interested in him-but Kim wasn't sure what Yori's game really was-she'd have to keep an eye out for her anytime they went to Japan. As Kim considered the Asian teen carefully, she mistimed one of her strikes and fell forward, off balance, landing on her chest. She grimaced, then got to her feet, going back through the motions slowly and correctly.

No, Ron would be much better off dating someone here, closer to Middleton-where she could keep an eye on them both. She trusted Ron, sort of, but she really didn't trust anyone to treat him correctly. She'd seen too many of her fellow teens treat him like a loser, even some that had set him up, acting nice to him, but saying other stuff behind his back. That's why she didn't trust Yori-Kim knew nothing about the teen-she may be genuine, but the red head didn't think so.

Kim never considered that she could be jealous of the attention he was getting.

As she finished her routine, she slowed her movements, finally stopping and holding her body still, then relaxing from her pose, breathing hard. Focusing on Ron's mission and fighting aspects, she figured the blond really could use a little instruction; she doubted that his 'mystical monkey power' was anything more than another label for the chaotic 'Ron factor' that was Ron Stoppable. Besides, it wasn't like she'd ever seen him really fight or anything-the best he'd ever managed was a sort of crazed, fearful flapping that distracted the villains until she was able to help him.

The teen nodded to herself as she made her way out of her room and down the hall to shower. Yes, the next time that she had a chance, Kim figured she would take the opportunity to try and teach Ron how to fight, at least how to do something, so that he would be able to take care of himself better on missions. She thought back to the times he had gone in alone, and decided that first thing when he got back, they would discuss his Mystical Monkey Power, and his other skills.

X X X X X X X X

A few hours later after leaving Drakken's lair, Zorpox arrived at the last location where he had Hench send supplies. He had already visited a number of other sites, and this was his last, but greatest stop. He quickly got out, then turned on the holoprojector-you never knew when prying eye could be looking at your pet project. This actually wasn't near the locations where he would be building the base-this was just a place for him to collect the supplies; a sort of staging ground. Besides steel beams, welding supplies, and numerous other construction supplies, there were two special containers in the center of the woods. He walked up to the smaller one and looked it over. It was easily ten feet high by ten feet across, and very long. He reached for the latch and opened it.

Inside were a number of human-sized figures. They were construction robots, nearly two hundred of them packed into the crate. Each construction robot was built on thin legs and arms, the better to stack inside a container such as this-but while the arms looked frail, each robot could easily lift two thousand pounds. There was one standing in the front, the command robot. It looked like all the others, save it had a yellow head instead of the gray the others wore. Zorpox flipped the switch that turned it on.

The robot booted up with a whirling and clicking sound, then stood silently, awaiting instructions. Zorpox reached for a pouch on his leg, and pulled out a small computer disk with all the orders. He placed it inside the machine's housing, and within seconds it had taken the programming and decided how to do everything. Like a giant hive, all of the robots became active, suddenly buzzing around and beginning work. Zorpox watched, only half interested, instead moving to the large crate in the clearing.

The container was huge, dwarfing many small building the teen had seen. It was almost three stories tall, and nearly forty feet wide; it wasn't clear how Hench had been able to deliver it-but Zorpox didn't really care. All he knew was that it was designed with one purpose in mind-and the robots were definitely going to need it. First, however, he needed to make some small adjustments to the device inside.

An hour later, Zorpox walked away from the container, leaving it sealed behind him-the machines would reopen it when necessary. He went to get his extra holoprojectors from the hovercar, then gave them to the lead robot. It acknowledged the items, then got to work. Zorpox knew he wouldn't be needed again, so he prepared to leave; he decided that next he needed some 'consulting' work done.

X X X X X X X X

Kim walked through the main doors into Middleton High School; her pace quickened as she made her way down the hall, then into one of the rooms. She had left a little earlier than usual, in order to have as much time as she could to work before school. The small lab that served as the yearbook's technical HQ was empty, and the teen had no trouble finding a computer to work on; she quickly booted it up, then pulled up the pictures that she needed to check over.

The teen spent the next twenty minutes reviewing the pictures, separating the good ones from the not so good, then deciding which ones she wanted to use. As it got closer to school starting, a number of other students came into the room, asking her advice, or checking some of the pictures and projects that they had going on. The red head didn't mind the interruptions today, taking every opportunity that she had to keep busy; soon enough, however, she was finished. She logged off, passed on a few other comments to some of the other editors and designers, then made her way towards her first class.

A nearly empty room greeted her. She was still a few minutes early for the class, and since Barkin was subbing for her teacher-freak toothpick incident, don't ask-she knew that he would only show up the last minute before the class actual started. That left her with almost eight minutes with nothing to do.

She wasn't sure she could make it.

Kim hated having any down time; it just felt like she was wasting her time, when she could be doing so many other things. That's why she often had her day scheduled out down to the last possible minute for everything, often entering her classes bare seconds before Barkin himself showed up. She preferred to be doing something productive, anything that would give her the feeling of accomplishment that she needed, because anything else meant she wasn't giving her best.

The teen looked around the room quickly, noting she still had a few more minutes, and reached into her backpack, pulling out some homework for another class, doing her best to keep ahead of what she needed to know. She finally settled on her chemistry book, doing some brief reading that talked about some different chemical components. As she finished up, Barkin made his way through the doors, quickly taking his position behind the teacher's desk, waiting the last ten seconds before the bell rang. As Kim closed her book, she noted that the next section of her book focused on chemical missiles and rocketry, including space travel. She smiled as she thought about her father's work, before facing forwards as her teacher stood up to lecture.

X X X X

Kim's next classes passed in a blur, one Barkin-lectured class leading right into the next. Finally her last class of the morning came to an end, and the teen made a break for the door, quickly slipping out of her last Barkin-taught class. She pondered all the different classes he taught, thinking about how odd it was that he did so many different things. Also, how did he have enough time to do everything; the former military man wasn't just a substitute, but also the vice-principle. He should have a number of tasks that kept him busy, but he still seemed to be able to teach as well. As she let her thoughts drift, she wondered if maybe there was more than one Barkin, able to take care of such work; maybe he had been cloned?

The teen shook her head, thinking she had been around Ron too much. No, her teacher was just very good at managing his schedule, and getting done everything he needed to. He had been in fine form today, lecturing the entire hour, cutting things off only in the last thirty second of class, when he had then assigned homework.

She finally made her way to her locker, taking the books she wouldn't need and placing them inside; the others that she would need she pushed into her backpack, slinging it over a shoulder as she made her way to the cafeteria. Two minutes later, she paused at the entrance to the room, her gaze traveling all over, momentarily forgetting that Ron wasn't at school this week. When her eyes settled on Monique sitting alone, she momentarily felt a pang of disappointment, but quickly forced it down, getting in line to get her food.

The red haired teen easily made it thought the line, then across the cafeteria, to set her plate down next to her friend. Kim recoiled slightly when she saw her friend. "Bad night?"

"No thanks to you." Monique grumbled, eying her friend warily.

"Me? What did I do?" Kim placed her hand against her chest, confused.

Monique thumped her head down on the table, mumbling something about nightmares, forks, food fights, and 'oh, the horror.' She rolled her head to the side, looking at her friend through a half-lidded eye. "What do the words 'Kim Possible,' and 'My Kitchen' mean to you? I think I got twenty minutes of good sleep last night, and that was after you burned my house down-there was nothing else for you to destroy."

Kim rolled her eyes and looked down at her food. "Right. Come on, Monique, you said I was doing well, and nothing bad happened yesterday. Just relax, I'm sure everything will be fine. You're the queen of the kitchen, after all." The teen smiled slyly. "And if I might add, that is a very nice outfit you're wearing."

The dark haired teen gave a dramatic sigh. "Trying to butter me up, are you? You think that I'll just forget all about my kitchen troubles if you talk shop about my outfit." Kim nodded slowly, and watched as a smile spread across her friend's face. "Well, you thought right." Monique quickly launched into a description of the new styles and clothing being brought to Club Banana, and she was soon in a better mood. Kim joined in, and the two were soon talking non stop, back and forth about all the latest fashions...then the Kimmunicator went off. With a sigh, and an apologetic smile to Monique, Kim answered.

"Wade: sitch me."

He frowned. "I've checked everyone-Dementor, DNAmy, Drakken, everyone-nobody is working with these chemicals or the linear director. No one's ordered the stuff, sold it, blown it up, anything. It's like it just disappeared off the face of the planet. But get this: that night after Dementor tried to steal from the space center-he was attacked."

"Attacked?" Her weirdar started going off. "By who? Drakken?" It was a well known fact that Dementor and Drakken hated each other.

"I doubt it-he was attacked by a giant robot-very expensive. It was probably the Seniors."

Kim shook her head. "This just keeps getting stranger-did they frame Dementor and Monkey Fist? No, this is like that trap-trap thing-I think Drakken's involved. Who bought the robot?"

Wade shrugged. "Some company in Japan-said they were going to use it for construction-turns out the company doesn't really exist." He looked back at his screen. "I still think it was the Seniors-it's got their type of setup. But you're right, something just seems odd about all of this-it's almost like every one of the villains has just randomly targeted another."

"Alright, Wade, I want you to set me up a ride after cheer practice-I'm going to pay Drakken a little visit."

He nodded, then signed off. Kim looked up from her Kimmunicator, only to make eye contact with Monique. "Looks like we're going to have to skip the cooking lessons tonight."

The other teen breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh, thank the mixer."

"Huh? What's that supposed to mean?"

Her friend shrugged. "I don't know, just seemed like the thing to say."

X X X X X X X X

Electronique was sitting in her cell, contemplating a way to get out. Of course, she'd spend the last few years trying to come up with a way-not that anything had worked. Without being able to use her electrical powers on the cell, she couldn't escape. She hated to admit it, but it seemed like Team Go had finally found a way to keep her locked up. She looked to where the light entered the room.

Team Go had known that any sort of electrical energy could be used by the villain, so they'd come up with an ingenious way of doing things. The lights were actually located away from her cell, far enough that she'd never be able to reach them; the light itself was channeled through a number of mirrors. The light that did make it to her cell was dimmer, almost to the point of being useless. Instead of being brightly lit, everything was cast in shadows; the room was dark, leaving her in perpetual twilight. It seemed to go along well with her mood. She had hated the lighting, originally, but now she seemed to thrive in it. It helped to keep her anger, to make brood day by day. She stood and paced her cell again, knowing that it would only be a short time before her next meal was delivered.

She hadn't figured out how, but her food was always delivered at the same time-she assumed by a person, but it really didn't matter. She'd tried cajoling, threatening, promising, nothing had worked. Either the person was deaf, or they knew to ignore her. The food always arrived at exactly the same time. If it wasn't for that, she would have no idea how much time had gone-as it was, she'd spent years in this horrible place.

How she hated this prison. It wasn't even the fact that she'd lost her freedom-the walls were painted pink! She hated pink. It had something to do with her electrical energy being repelled by this substance-whatever it was. Her non-conductive prison was the most...she frowned. Something wasn't right. She looked around, then at the slot on her door where the food was usually delivered. It was late.

Her eyes widened as she had a panic attack. After all this time, had they forgotten about her? Had they left her to die, a lonely, cold, starving death? She began banging on the door, yelling at the top of her lungs. She stopped, her fear turning to anger. She was Electronique-the most dangerous villain that Team Go had faced. She'd built a laser cannon out of a flashlight and four batteries-she would not go down quietly-she'd escape and sow her revenge on Team Go. She stepped back from the door and sat, considering what she was going to do.

She was sitting across from the door when she heard an unmistakable sound, one she hadn't heard in years. The door opened, and she stood to face the person entering, figuring this was her chance to attack and escape.

Her heart leapt into her throat when she saw who was standing at the door. She backpedaled, before backing into the wall behind her. It was him. She charged her electrical powers and fired the largest blast she could with her depleted energy. Instead of launching him off his feet, the blast fizzled out on some sort of force shield. She heard a low chuckle from the figure, bringing back chilling memories. She spoke fearfully, hesitantly. "Z-zorpox. Do...you have need of me, my lord?"

She frowned as the figure hesitated. He moved forward, and she was finally able to see some aspects of the figure across from her; she stained her eyes, and could see nothing more than his outline, but it was enough-it definitely wasn't the Zorpox she had known. There was a resemblance, in the clothes and stance, but this person was shorter, less imposing. Even still, she received the same sense of energy and power from the figure...but none of the unbalanced insanity the other had possessed. This person was even more dangerous, if that was possible.

"Yes, I do have something for you to do, Electronique. I know you have a thing for electronics...what can you do with this?" He tossed a damaged helmet toward her. She caught it carefully, then looked it over, letting her hands trace over the exposed wires and broken components, acting more by feel than sight in this darkened room. It was damaged quite severely, although the villain knew she could repair it and make it better. She set it beside her, looking at the Zorpox-imposter. She tried to see his face, but the shadows in the room make it difficult. He face seemed to be a blue color, increasing her difficulty; all she could tell was that he was young. Very young.

"I'm sure I can do something with this..." She decided to try something, see how far this man could be pushed. "What's in it for me?"

Zorpox waved his hand around the room. "You're freedom, of course. I will release you from this prison, give you the chance to do what you've always wanted-destroy Team Go." He pointed at the helmet. "That machine will take a bad person and make their evil greater. On a good person..." He let the sentence trail off as Electronique put two and two together.

"Well, I'm sure you can figure that out." He looked at her. "There's only one problem-you have to put the helmet on the person to use it-hard to do with Team Go, isn't it...unless you were to make it work long range." He grinned. "Is that worth it, Electronique?"

"Very much so." She returned the grin, clutching the helmet tightly. Zorpox threw something else to her, and she caught it. "What's this?" Even as she asked, though, she had figured it out. It was a battery. She sucked the energy out of the battery, then threw it to the floor. It wasn't a huge charge, but it was plenty to get her started. She got to work, using the energy to help her make changes to the Attitudinator. She took some tools that Zorpox gave her, and began working on the changes.

While she worked, the faux-villain posed a number of different questions to her; it seemed that he wasn't as knowledgeable in electronics as she was. The female villain thought that interesting, considering the experience the true Zorpox had-but it just further cemented her opinion of the man; he wasn't as dangerous. Nevertheless, she answered his questions truthfully, hoping that it might give her some insight into his character and plans.

For a villain, he seemed to have in inordinate amount of curiosity; wishing to know about all sorts of useless things. He queried her about many things, such as the most electrically resistant semiconductors, ways to store a charge and enhance the holdings of a capacitor, even the the maximum electrical voltage that different electronics in a house would withstand-everything from light bulbs to refrigerators. Finally he seemed content in the knowledge he had gotten, leaving her to finish the weapon in her hands. Finished, Electronique handed it over to the other villain, and watched as Zorpox run a scanner over it, analyzing how she had made it work.

The Electro-villain stood up, then started to move toward the door. She stopped when she realized the other villain hadn't moved. She looked at him, seated in the only other chair in the room; she was between him and the door. "What are you waiting for-let's go."

Zorpox finally stood, then shook his head. He grinned evilly. "I'm sorry, my dear, but you can't leave-you have to stay here. If you leave now, you'll ruin my plan."

She frowned, realizing he was about to double-cross her. "But you said you'd let me leave." She lifted a hand just slightly, pointed a finger at him. She fired a charged blast off, intending to incapacitate him. Again, the blast met the orange shield-only this time it burrowed through, straight at Zorpox. If the caped villain was surprised that she'd been able to bypass his shield, he didn't show it; instead, he lifted his left hand up, and caught the blast in his palm. He chuckled.

"Rubber gloves." He pulled out the most innocuous of weapons-a water gun; Electronique knew what that would do to her, though. "I'm afraid you'll have to stay. I wasn't lying, though." He smirked. "I said I'd let you leave-I just never said when." He walked past her, unconcerned, before finally stopping at the door. He stood outlined in the door frame, and suddenly the resemblance to the other Zorpox was uncanny. "Consider yourself lucky, sparky. You've tried to fry me twice-I won't give you a chance to try again." He closed the door on her, locking her in her cell again.

Electronique fired a last shot off at the door, but it was more for flair than anything. _How dare that upstart come in here and threaten me. _She knew that when she finished with Team Go, she'd go after this impersonator and deal with him-he'd lied to her, made a fool of her...he was a menace. She went back to sit in her favorite chair, and noticed the Attitudinator helmet sitting on her table. _Then again, maybe he will follow through with his promise. _She sat down, beginning her next long wait until the villain returned.

X X X X

As Zorpox left the villain's prison, he couldn't help but muse aloud. "'Zorpox,' huh...maybe there's a little more to that old comic book than Wade realized." He gave a little shrug-it didn't really matter. He looked over the scans of Electronique's weapon-long range ability to 'adjust' a person's good or evil. The villain chuckled, then filed it away for use; he had other thing he needed to work on first...

X X X X X X X X

"Thanks for the ride Mr. Lindsey." For once, Kim was really glad that Ron wasn't with her-she doubted that this would have been his favorite ride. Mr. Lindsey was a cargo pilot, often transporting things to and from archeological dig sites. In this case, he was transferring some of Dr. Ian's more recent acquisitions...the plane was loaded full of monkey artifacts.

"No problem, Ms Possible, just glad to be able to help you like you helped me." He frowned. "Although I can't really say that this makes us even."

Kim shook her head, as always slightly embarrassed at all the praise she got. "Don't be silly, Mr. Lindsey, it was no big deal, really. I'm just glad I could help."

"No big deal?" He said incredulously. "Ms. Possible, you dived out of an airplane, then free-falled to another plane, just to save my pet snake. Of course it's a big deal." He looked over beside him. "Isn't it, Reggie?"

The small python stuck its head up, and made an approximation of a nod. The snake slithered off, under the chairs, then went and found a warm spot to lay. Unbeknownst to anyone, that spot happened to be near where Rufus as napping. While Kim and Mr. Lindsey were chatting, Reggie was just getting comfortable, when he sensed a meal nearby. He moved around, quietly, then found his potential prey. The little mole rat was sprawled out, totally dead to the world-but fortunately, some sort of survival instinct seemed to be working.

Rufus popped a single eye open, and came face to face with a small, hissing tongue. With a startled scream, he dashed off, the snake in swift pursuit. The mole rat dashed under Kim's chair and popped out right in front of her, scaring the teen. She was up and out of her seat before she had even realized what was going on. She jumped forward and tried to grab Rufus, but the mole rat was in a complete state of panic, racing all over the cabin.

Reggie stuck with him like glue, until finally Rufus got confused and turned around. The mole rat dashed toward what he thought was a safe haven, only to realize he'd boxed himself in. Reggie closed in on his prey, and raised himself up, ready to strike. His head drifted back, but just as he was going to strike, he felt something grab him from behind. He was lifted into the air, and came face to face with Kim Possible.

She glared at the python, then turned her glare against Rufus. The mole rat wasn't sure what the teen was angry about, so he gave a weak little grin and waved. Kim wasn't amused, and motioned to her pocket, so he climbed in, grumbling all the way. Kim took Reggie back up front, and placed him back in the copilot's chair. Mr. Lindsey nodded his thanks, and the rest of the ride went smoothly.

X X X X

Kim wasn't sure what to expect when she got to Drakken's lair. Laser Defense grid? Henchmen? Booby traps? Shego? Of course, it was what she least expected that she got.

That is to say, nothing.

Kim looked down at the Kimmunicator. "What do you mean there's no security?"

Wade shrugged. "I'm not getting anything-no power readings, no super weapons, not even a over-powered coffee maker. It's like the place is abandoned-or at least, as abandoned as any one of Drakken's lairs. There's some lights and stuff on, but nothing that screams 'Doomsday weapon.' Sorry Kim, either he's got everything really hidden, or there's nothing there."

She took a deep breath. "Okay, then lets try the direct approach." She went up to Drakken's main door...and knocked.

A small screen lit up, then initiated a scan of Kim. She dropped into a fighting stance, but nothing happened. Finally the scanning stopped, and the door whooshed open. Now she was really surprised. She made her way inside, finally stopping outside of Drakken's lab. She hesitated, then used the panel on the wall to open the door. Drakken was seating in the middle of the room, at a table, working on building...something in a bottle. She wandered up to him, cautiously, and he turned, holding the item in his hands carefully, and she realized that inside the glass bottle was a small replica of one of his doomsday weapons.

"Afternoon, Kim...or is it evening, I've lost track of time?"

Kim frowned-this wasn't like Drakken. While he may be overconfident and talkative, he wasn't...friendly. At least, not to her-he had shown a couple of times that he had things in common with Ron. Go figure. "I'm on to you Drakken."

"On to me?" He finally looked at her. "What are you talking about-I'm on vacation. Well, Shego is-I'm just waiting for her to get back." There was a beeping, so the Doctor stood up. Kim dropped into a crouch and eyed him carefully, watching as he walked over to an over. He reached inside and pulled out cookies. "Want a peanut butter sticky?" He held one of the cookies up for her.

She just shook her head. "What, so you can poison me? You think I'd just fall for that?"

He shrugged, then popped the cookie in his mouth. "It would have worked on your buffoon." He frowned. "Where is he, by the way?"

"Ron's...busy." Kim said carefully. She didn't want anyone to know where he was, or else a villain might get the idea they could attack him while she wasn't around. "He'll be back next week." She paused. "I know that you were the one that attacked Dementor-it's got your peanut-buttery fingerprints all over it."

Drakken put his hand to his chest. "Kimberly Ann, I'm hurt. You know Dementor and I get along fine." She gave him a look. "Okay, that little weasel has stolen my inventions too many times to count, and I hate his guts, but why would I want any rocket fuel?" He motioned around his empty lab. "As you can see, I haven't got anything I'm working on that I could use it for." He grinned in a friendly sort of way; Kim was instantly suspicious. "Unless you think I'm going to take over the world with my little weapon here." He motioned at the table. "Besides, aren't the Seniors working on taking over the world?"

Kim didn't have anything to say at that, so Drakken chuckled. "Oh, you already knew about that? And you came here to harass me any way? Shame on you Kimberly Ann." She growled, and gave the villain a dark stare. Drakken took a half step back. "I, um, mean good job on checking everything out." All of a sudden the villain realized that if Kim wanted to hurt him, Shego wasn't around to stop her. He had a painful flashback of Kim giving him a flying Kung Fu wedgie.

"L-listen, Kim, I'm not up to anything. Honest." He went over to his computer. "Here, check my systems out if you don't believe me." Kim pulled out the Kimmunicator and contacted Wade, then had him scan the computer. Surprisingly enough, it seemed like Drakken was telling the truth. While Kim wasn't looking, Drakken stuck his tongue out at her. She turned, and he just smiled.

"Alright, Drakken, I believe you...for now. But if you're lying...well, I can do worse things than give wedgies. Much worse."

Drakken shuddered as he wondered what she could have in mind.

X X X X

"Well, Wade, that was a bust." Kim shook her head. She'd been so sure that Drakken was behind all this, even if it really seemed way beyond him. The villain had two types of plans-very simple, and extremely...convoluted. The events of the last few days seemed to fall in the latter category, but she still couldn't make the connection. She _knew_ Drakken was involved, even with all the evidence against it.

According to the evidence, the Seniors were behind it all-but this wasn't like them. They weren't this subtle-neither were any of the other villains...but of all of them, Drakken could have the most twisted plans. She kept racking her brain, trying to find the hole Drakken's story, but nothing came to mind. She'd just have to come at this from a different angle.

"Wade, set a ride up for tomorrow-I'll visit the Seniors, and see what they're up to." Maybe they could provide some insight into what was going on.

Unless, of course, they got attacked next.

X X X X X X X X

Drakken leaned back in his chair, cackling to himself; she'd bought it! He'd managed to pull one over on Kim Possible. He laughed louder, only to hear a voice whisper in his ear. "What's so funny, Dr D?"

"Shego!" He wore the look of a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar. "Nothing, that's what's funny-I mean, sometimes I just laugh uncontrollable; helps keep the whole mad-scientist thing going."

She could tell he was lying, but she wasn't interested enough to find out what he was lying about. "Yeah, sure. Listen, Drakken, have you seen Zorpox today?"

The villain frowned and shook his head. "Actually, no, I haven't. Have you?"

"Why do you think I'm asking?" She rolled her eyes. "Shouldn't you be keeping tabs on him?"

Her employer sputtered. "Well, I, of course, you know...yes, I have-but don't tell him. He might get upset." The blue villain led Shego down to the room that he had set up as a surveillance center. It wasn't until he had gotten inside that he remembered that he'd been spying on Shego, too. He tried to steer her away from the screens that were devoted to watching her. Fortunately, she was focused on the caped villain, and didn't notice the screens of her. Drakken quickly turned them off, then checked the footage.

"Where is he...hm, look, here." Drakken tapped the screen. "Looks like he took a hovercar somewhere. Lets check the GPS..." The mad scientist inputted some more keystrokes, and some numbers appeared on screen. "Looks like he went out for some Bueno Nacho. I hope he doesn't get cheese on those seats-they stain the leather." Shego rolled her eyes.

The villainess knew that she wouldn't be able to figure anything else out here, so she turned to leave. Of course, at that very moment, one of the...least bright of Drakken's henchmen wandered over. "Dr Drakken? Is it really a good idea to let her in here-she'll see we've been taping her." Drakken tried to stop the man, frantically waving his arms and shaking his head, but the henchman's goggles limited his vision-he wasn't able to see the motions.

Shego, on her way out the door, froze. She turned, ever so slowly, and faced her boss. He gave her a weak grin, but didn't have anything to say. To his complete and total surprise, she began laughing. "You've been watching me? I didn't think you'd have the guts to do something like that." She moved toward him, slowly, and he backed up. After working together for the last couple of years, Drakken was actually getting pretty good at reading her emotions-and he could swear that her eyes were glowing with a green fire.

The dark haired woman placed a glowing finger on his chest, and her voice dropped so low he could barely hear it. "I value my privacy. When I'm in the halls, out on work for you, tape me as much as you want-but if I ever find out that you've been taping me when you shouldn't be..." She pushed her clawed fingertip downward; the villain felt the sharp tip against his chest. "Trust me, jail will be the least of your worries."

The blue villain nodded rapidly, and Shego let a little smile play on her lips as she walked out of the room. In actual point of fact, it really didn't bother her that he'd been spying on her-she knew that there were cameras in all the hallways, in order to track Kim Possible when the teen would show up to thwart their plans. She was sort of proud that the doctor was not only spying on Zorpox, but on her as well-it showed that for once he was actually thinking about things, applying some initiative. No, her ire wasn't directed at Drakken, he had just been an easy outlet.

The villainess walked down the halls, considering something much more important, however. What was that caped villain doing? She knew he was busy with a number of things for the plan, but also busy with other things that she had no idea about. Despite her reservations about the plan, she had thought it through very carefully-and came to the realization that Zorpox was correct. It wasn't the common population that he needed to control, but rather the leaders. There was still something about the plan, though, that bothered her.

She couldn't put her finger on it, but she knew that this plan was doomed to disaster, just like so many that Drakken had attempted. While a satellite system sounded like a good idea, she knew that there was some fatal flaw lurking in the design. On the other hand, with Zorpox, you never quite knew what was possible. She decided to go to the one place that always gave her clarity.

X X X X X X X X

By the time Kim made it back home, it was getting late in the afternoon; it was still early enough that she had some time to herself, but she didn't feel like bothering Monique about her cooking anymore tonight. Instead, the teen went inside, pulling out her homework, looking over some of the different projects and things that she had to get done for the next day, and over the next few weeks.

Her most pressing concerns were a couple of pages of math, chemistry and English homework; not so hard to get done, just quite a bit of work that couldn't be rushed. Otherwise, the only 'long term' project she had was trying to read the book that Barkin had given out. She looked the book over again, wondering why anyone would want to read such a dark and depressing book. Dr Jekyll and Mr Hide. She shook her head; Kim preferred stories where the good guy won in the end, not moral and ethical discussions hidden in a book. And there were only two women, barely mentioned in the book-what was up with that?

She sighed, tossing the book sideways, up on to her dresser. Unfortunately, her aim was imperfect, and she managed to hit a small picture she kept there. She heard the frame slide across the desk, then fall off, thumping on her carpet. With a slightly irritated growl, she slipped off her bed, quickly snatching the picture up, starting to place it back. As she did, she paused, looking at the picture, smiling slightly. The frame held a picture of her and Ron, together, taken a few years ago; it was one of her favorites, of the two of them together, not caring what others thought, or how silly they looked. As it was, Kim was making a funny face, with Ron behind her, holding his hand up to give her a set of bunny ears.

As she placed the photo back, she headed over to her bed, then flopped back down. She was almost completely bored out of her mind-there was only so much homework she could do. After the last couple of hours, she was pretty much caught up on all of her homework-even some of her projects that weren't due for weeks. She stared at the ceiling for what seemed like forever, before looking over to her bedside clock. Three minutes had passed.

The teen just laid still, feeling all her energy seem to flow into the mattress beneath her, leaving her tired and listless. She heard the phone ringing downstairs, but couldn't even work up enough interest to lift her head. Finally, after a few seconds, she heard footsteps on her stairs, and watched her mom come up into the loft, a phone to her ear. "Hold on Mrs. Vill, I'm got Kimmie here, I'll let you talk to her." Ann pulled the phone away, mouthing 'babysit' at the teen.

Kim took the phone, perking up as she realized that maybe her boredom was at an end.

X X X X X X X X

As Zorpox got out of his hovercraft, he was surprised to see Shego inside the hanger; actually, she was off in a far corner, standing next to an aircraft he had noticed but dismissed. As he walked over, she hopped up onto the nose, then bent into the cockpit, seemingly oblivious to the villain. The caped villain finally got close enough to inspect the craft, and was surprised at the vehicle.

It looked like a small fighter jet, although it had a number of enhancements-thrust vectoring engines, a number of wind vanes, hidden compartments for weapon storage, stealth/camouflage armor, even a Vertical take-off and landing mode-this was no mere fighter, but a state of the art plane that would leave GJ jets in the dust. As he studied its lines, he realized that the lower lighting in this corner of the hanger had helped to hide a vital clue-the plane was shaded in Shego's signature colors. He moved closer, and the villainess finally spoke.

"We may be working together, Zorpox, but take a step closer to my plane and I'll turn you into a smoking crater."

He stopped, for once, decided to respect this one thing. He stood, waiting, until she had finished her inspection, then hopped down to glare at him.

"Very nice, Shego." He commented, eying the exterior. "Is it yours?"

Unsure at his respectful tone, she hesitated. "Yes. Mine." She ran a hand on the side, stopping as she found a nearly invisible scar that marred the vehicle. "I had it made a few months after I started working with Drakken." She turned with a small smirk. "He does pay pretty well." Her smile turned dark. "And if you even think of messing with this plane...well, not even Princess will save you from me."

He nodded. "You have my word that I will not touch your plane." A predator's grin. "Everything else is fair game, though."

Shego stepped in close, her hands glowing dangerously. "Don't forget it, either." She pulled back and crinkled her nose, giving him a searching look. "Did you get shocked recently?"

"Aww, you're concerned about me?" Inwardly, the caped villain tensed up, fearing that she might make a connection. Fortunately, his statement seemed to shift her attention.

Her eyes glared at him. "No, just wondering if you're going to fry yourself first." She sniffed again, then shrugged-something about the electrical smell was familiar, but it wasn't anything she could put her finger on. She pushed past him, leaving Zorpox alone; he took the time to stare at her plane, as one would admire a piece of art.

X X X X

As he left the hanger, Zorpox realized that he was being careless, letting Shego make certain connections. First the haggis, now the electrical scent from Electronique-he was slipping up and making mistakes. Sure, they were small, nearly inconsequential, but added together, they could be detrimental. He thought about all the times that the other villains had messed up-it usually wasn't because of some huge error, but some little thing that Kim could exploit...and, despite what he said about her, he knew that Shego was just as smart as Kim.

The villain came to a decision-it was time to step up the game. He had finally figured out a way to adjust his plan to use Shego, instead of the information from her past. Before now, his actions with Shego had been nothing more than feints, ways to test how she could be pushed, how far she would bend before she finally broke Now that he knew, it was time to push her to the snapping point, to cement his plan and prepare it for action.

Within the next two days, he would cause her downfall, and begin his own ascent.

X X X X X X X X

"Eve! Eve, stop that!" Kim yelled at the eight year old, her eyes narrowed in anger.

_This is so not worth six fifty an hour._

After receiving the call from Mrs Vill, Kim had practically jumped at the chance to do something this evening, even if it was babysitting. She figured that this would be a good opportunity for her keep her mind off not having anything to do, plus she would be able to make a little bit of money for her prom dress. The parent had called saying that she couldn't get anyone to babysit her daughter; Kim had the sinking suspicion that nobody _wanted_ to babysit the little terror, Eve Vill.

The night had started easily enough, with the little girl acting like a perfect angel as Mrs Vill had gone through the rules, giving Kim the different emergency numbers, then left, telling the teen to have the child in bed by eight thirty. As soon as the adult was gone, the little brat had shown her true colors. A sharp yank on Kim's red hair had started the night off. Things went downhill from there.

Eve seemed to have no goal in mind other than driving her babysitter batty. The eight year old started by charging all around the house, and when Kim had asked her to stop, the child hadn't even bothered to stop, continuing her crazed action. Kim had decided to follow, intent on grabbing Eve-the child had decided that the tables and other furniture she was passing could be used to trip up the teen. The eight year old started knocking things over, in Kim's way; fortunately, nothing was breakable.

Once the child had tired of that game, her next one involved chasing Kim. Eve had a water gun that she filled with some sort of sticky red syrup, and intended to squirt her babysitter with it. Kim had to retreat quickly, and figure out some other way of intervening; her stealthy skills came in handy, and the teen was able to slip behind Eve and take the super soaker from her, disarming the kid.

Now, Eve had a pile of plates in her hands, and was standing by the upstairs railing, leaning over and acting like she was going to drop the breakable items. She smirked, waving them around, then tossing one into the air, forcing Kim to make a diving grab, barely catching it before it shattered against the floor. As the child threw another plate, the teen had to carefully move again, twisting to catch the next one, insuring it didn't hit the one already in her hand. She set them down, watching the child as she threatened to throw the next one.

Glaring at the evil little girl, Kim couldn't help but also feel a little guilt, remembering Ron complaining about his cousin, Shawn. She hadn't believed that her best friend's cousin could be such trouble, but she had quickly learned about him, as well. Right now, it was a toss up between which of the children was worse. She vowed never to babysit this terror again, no matter how much money the Vills offered.

Eve leaned over the railing, lifting a plate in her hands, acting like she was going to throw it; she over extended herself, leaning too far until her body swung forward. This was enough to cause her to lose her grip, and the child went flipping through the air, on a direct collision with the floor. Her babysitter let loose a small yelp of surprise, but was easily able to cross the distance, catching the eight year old.

The child panted fearfully in Kim's arms, before finally looking up at the teen, her eyes wide and apologetic. The red head set her down, and Eve hesitated, then looked up at her. "I-I'm sorry, Kim, thanks for catching me, even though I've been so much trouble."

Kim went over to the couch, sitting lightly, and Eve went over to join her. "No big, Eve, it's what I do-I help people." There was a rattle from the front door, and a few seconds later, Mrs Vill came in. Her daughter dashed across the room to her mother, jumping up to give her a hug, telling her excitedly about how Kim had saved her.

The red head blushed as Mrs Vill thanked her profusely, both at saving her daughter from the fall, and at being willing to babysit on such late notice. The adult went to grab her purse, quickly returning, presenting Kim with her money for the evening, plus a little extra. The teen tried to refuse, but the parent insisted, and Kim had no choice but to relent. As Mrs Vill walked her over to the door, Kim thought that maybe it wouldn't be so bad to babysit the kid again, if she was more well behaved after that incident.

A crashing sound from behind them erased all of Kim's doubt.

X X X X X X X X

Zorpox walked down through the hallways, his pace measured, unhurried. He had spent the last few hours working in his lab, trying to figure out some specifics about electrical systems. He knew pretty much what he wanted to do, and after working out his plan carefully, he was fairly sure that it would all work-there may be some things that he would have to adjust his schedule and planning around, but overall, he was confident that he had a good hold on everything.

He shifted his focus, instead considering what he needed to do in the next couple of days; his more complicated plan could wait for a while. He still had some supplies that he needed to get-despite what Hench was providing, Zorpox had not given the villain supplier a list of everything that he needed. While getting everything from Henchco would have been the easiest way to obtain his supplies, it would also have given Kim all the pieces of the puzzle if she queried him at a later date. Instead, the villain was spreading out, getting his supplies from many different places, in order to ensure that no one person had all the pieces of the puzzle-except him.

After considering all of this, Zorpox finally made his way back to his room, and stealthily made his way inside, quickly sitting in front of his computer terminal. The caped villain mused for a second, gather a list of items he needed, then sat down in order to get the supplies. He ordered a number of different things, but soon realized that his production would not be as simple as he had originally thought. Getting the items he needed in the quantities he desired would draw attention-no matter who he went through. He shook his head, knowing that Wade would quickly put up a red flag when the supplies were bought-he would instead have to go about acquiring them a different way.

The caped villain realized that he could actually put off getting some of the supplies until later-it wouldn't do any good to have the supplies if he couldn't manufacture what he wanted, so he decided that he would get those supplies at a later time. There was one thing, thought, that he did need right away; but this was for the current stage of his plan, instead of his over arching scheme. He grinned to himself as he realized who he was going to get the supplies from-a familiar face that should hopefully make the meeting go much smoother.

At the same time, he realized that there was no guarantee that the supplier was going to be totally honest with him-it was highly likely that the man would try and cheat him. With a smirk, Zorpox set up the location for the meeting, intending to trade the money for supplies in a location that he would have the advantage, even if his supplier didn't know it. After receiving confirmation that Perkins would be there, the caped villain quickly went to work hacking a nearby system, ensuring that if the deal went south, he would have an advantage.

Idly, Zorpox leaned back in his chair, then booted up the programs that he used in the creation of his super weapons. He intended to create three more super weapons before the night was done, and he quickly snapped his fingers, then began typing rapidly. His first creation was a sub-orbital cryogenic preserver; a satellite system that could be used to effect the weather and global system of the planet. Just a handful of the devices could be used in the upper atmosphere, able to leach heat from the very air-this would allow him to freeze water particles, or, in reverse, cause the heating of the atmosphere, effecting weather systems. He knew it could be used to an even greater devastating effect if he had a way to cause enormous amounts of water to become available; unfortunately, the oceans would be much too far away to sap water from them directly.

He planned two other inventions after his first, knowing that they could be useful in some situation or another. The creation of a railgun was his next task. A super weapon in everything save name, this device would be able to take a small metal slug, and accelerate it to hyper velocity, shooting the projectile out with enough force to destroy nearly anything. The kinetic energy delivered by this weapon could be extremely dangerous, and as such, he put heightened security around his plans-he didn't want anyone, especially Drakken or any of the other villains to get a hold of it. While a single slug launch wouldn't be dangerous, with the way the villains had of expanding things to insane levels, Zorpox knew this device must not fall into their hands. In order to be completely sure, he made a few small adjustments to the plan, insuring that anyone who used these exact plans would build a device that didn't work. He, of course, had memorized the changes, knowing how to build the device.

Lastly his third device was one he was particularly proud of. A ferro-magnetic oscillator, it had the unique effect of first amplifying a magnetic metal's magnetic properties, allowing even a basic thin magnet to hold with the force of a super magnet. It was based in part on a device he had come across where Mr Dr Possible worked-particularly the robotics department, headed by a certain V. F. Porter. Zorpox thought back fondly to the creation of the robot, Oliver, and the mission Kim and Ron had been on. The magnet they had used to stop Fen had been of a similar design, an electromagnet of sorts; the villain's design just build upon its base.

He grinned, staring at the plans, knowing that some, or all of them could prove to be essential in the future. As he stood, he moved over to the bed, reaching down into his belt, checking one last thing before he turned in for the night. He had made one last small stop before he had come back to the lair; he emptied his pockets, hiding his supplies in his room, planning to use them the next day.

X X X X X X X X

Kim made it back home shortly before her bedtime; she had enough time to take care of a little bit more of her homework, before she had to retire for the evening. She spent a few minutes going over some English and math homework, then read through a section of her science book. She frowned to herself as she realized that it was over rocketry; it was rather interesting how often that particular subject was coming up lately. She thought back over her recent missions, and the twisted events going on-first Killigan, then hints of Monkey Fist, Dementor, Drakken and the Seniors-it was all too weird.

The teen sat back, then reached over beside her for her Kimmunicator, quickly hitting the call button. Wade appeared almost instantly. "Problem, Kim?"

She smiled back at her tech friend. "No, I guess I'm checking to see if you've heard anything yet." He mutely shook his head. "No? Well, I sort of want to run things through, out loud, see if there is something I'm missing. This just all seems too strange." She mumbled to herself. "My weirdar's going off."

Wade nodded somewhat to himself, calling up some of the different footage and information that they had. "Well, we know for sure that whatever is going on, a key piece of it involved Killigan. He's the first person that was attacked, and the first location that we have something missing." A diagram of the golf club appeared on the small screen. "It looks like it was about more than just the golf club, though-it might be someone that has a vendetta against the villain." He mused for a second. "Or maybe a vigilante hero, someone who attacked the villain to stop him."

The red head shook her head. "Then why haven't they returned the golf club yet?"

"Not enough postage?"

Kim have him a look. "Nice try, _Ron._" Her sarcasm made her friend bite his tongue. Kim's eyes widened, and she shook her head. "Sorry, Wade, it's been a long night, I'm a little tired and edgy. That wasn't fair to you, or Ron; you both come up with good ideas all the time."

Wade gave her a smile small, letting her know that he didn't take offense. "Little Eve Vill?"

"You've heard of her?"

He nodded back. "Actually, I'm sorta surprised that you haven't, since you babysit."

Kim shook her head and laid back. "I haven't been babysitting as much as I used to, been so busy with missions and homework and stuff. Actually, this is the first time I've babysat in almost a month." She blinked, then looked at her friend. "So you know some stories about Eve?"

"Yeah." He thought for a few seconds. "She's something of a terror when it comes to babysitters-I have to congratulate you, though, you really can do anything-I think you're the first babysitter that's stuck around the whole night."

Kim sighed and laid back.

X X X X X X X X

Later that night, Shego managed to slip out of her room quietly, fairly certain that she had not alerted Zorpox to her actions. She made her way down the halls, her gaze self consciously traveling upwards to look at the cameras spaced around her. She had never really considered them before, in the sense that they could be used to spy on her. As she thought about it, she realized that if Drakken was smart enough to be watching her, there was no doubt that Zorpox would be as well. No matter, if she second guessed everything she did, she would force herself into inactivity-and then the caped villain really would win.

The green woman made her way to her first stop, the doorway just outside the security room. She pushed her way in, noting the four henchmen inside; two of them were sleeping in their chairs, and a third was using a marker to draw on the different monitors. The fourth one, the most alert of the bunch, had obviously been watching her; he turned, his mouth gaping open as he realized that Shego had just come inside with them. He gulped, and stood.

"Wh-what do you need, Shego?"

"Out of my way." She shoved the man back down into his seat, then leaned over the console.

"You...you're not supposed to be in here, we're observing you."

She finally looked at him, her eyes dark, but tinted slightly in humor at the fear she caused. "Observe away, I'm not going anywhere." The villainess bent back over the console, her hands dancing on the keyboard, calling up first one video, then another. She inspected them carefully, looking for something, anything out the ordinary that she could work with. Unfortunately, she was having trouble accessing the correct footage.

"If...if I may ask, what exactly are you looking for, Shego?" The henchmen, despite his fear, did his best to act profession-well, as professional as any of Drakken's henchmen.

Interrupted again, she finally let some of her anger out. "Zorpox. Footage. Now!" He hastened to comply.

Fortunately for the man's safety, he was able to call up the appropriate video, and Shego watched carefully, noting that her foe had left in the hovercraft, just as she had seen earlier with Drakken. This time, though, she used the time delay to figure out that he had been gone for a substantial amount of time. _Plenty of time to be planning something,_ her mind supplied. _But where did he go?_

She turned and walked out, leaving the henchman alone. He gave a gasp as he relaxed, then looked over at his three colleagues. The one with the marker looked at him, then tossed the writing instrument into the air. The henchman caught it, and pulled up some footage of Shego, quickly freezing it. He added a set of horns to her head, and a pointy tail.

X X X X

The hanger was empty at this time of night...well, technically, it was empty almost all the time, just because Drakken didn't trust the henchmen to fly, and Shego didn't trust Drakken-so she was the only one with total access to everything. She was quickly able to spot Zorpox's hovercraft, its unique coloration standing out amongst the other bland hovercars. She moved to it, then hopped in, before bending over to look at the GPS. Her worst fears were confirmed when a quick check told her the device had been hacked. They had no idea where Zorpox had gone.

She frowned, seriously considering her options. She could try and hook it back up, or attach another device to track him-but odds were, he'd find it. She could wreck the hovercraft so that he couldn't leave, but she knew Drakken wouldn't be too pleased with that, either. That left her only one choice, the most terrifying, risky plan of all.

Go with him.

She felt chills run down her body at the thought. The villainess was immensely proud of her skills, and just as sure of her ability to defend herself against anything-but if you throw Zorpox in the mix, anything could happen. She got an extremely disconcerting feeling that if she went with him, it would be highly dangerous; yet at the same time, it would be ever more disastrous to just let him continue in his plans. She clenched her hands, the glow illuminating the hanger as she made her decision.

* * *

_**A/N** I've always wondered about Electronique; what was her prison like, how did she escape, where did she get the attitudinator helmet-so I figured I address a few of these here. Along the same lines, I wondered why they didn't just use Ron's old Attitudinator helmet on Team Go...unless, of course, he didn't have the helmet anymore. So, my take on a few of those unanswered questions._

_Next up, Shego takes a little trip with Zorpox. Hopefully she won't derail his plans._


	12. Trips

_**A/N **Another lengthy day that I've divided into two chapters. Things are starting to ramp up._

_Thanks to Eddy13 for beta reading._

* * *

**Chapter 12: Trips**

_(Thursday Morning-Week 2)_

Kim woke up, fairly refreshed after the previous night's ordeal. After Wade had brought up her babysitting, the two had gotten off track, and spent the rest of the evening with Kim relating some of her babysitting episodes. It wasn't until the teen went to turn off her light that she remembered they had been talking about going over the villains' actions, in order to try and see if there was anything that they were missing. Wade had promised to contact her in the morning, on her way to school, so that they could go over things fresh.

Now completely awake, Kim stretched, twice, then dropped into a fighting stance. To her surprise, she heard a small 'pat' sound beside her, and looked down, spotting Rufus posed next to her, mimicking her stance. Startled, she dropped out of the pose, looking at him. "Rufus?"

The mole rat chittered up at her, still in his stance. She couldn't quite make out all of what he said, but she got the gist of things, realizing that he was going to practice with her, too. The teen shook her head, wondering where the mole rat had learned his pose, but realizing she had come across much stranger things before. As she moved through her morning routine, she kept one eye watching him, seeing what he was doing. To her surprise, he followed her moves exactly.

Kim continued, one action into the next, the mole rat on the floor pacing her perfectly. The teen frowned, still confused, then remembered that he had been sleeping in her room the last couple of days-had he been watching her, learning what she did? And how had he learned so fast? With a mental shrug, she decided to change things up slightly, watching her small pink copy cat, to see what he did. Finally, as her actions changed, his movements stuttered, then he seemed to slow, before following her actions a few seconds after she performed them. Kim realized he really was learning from her!

As she bent down on one knee, Kim looked at Ron's little mole rat buddy. "Rufus, are you learning Kung Fu from me?"

The pink creature bobbed his head up at her, smiling, giving a double thumbs up. "Study!"

The teen couldn't argue with that enthusiasm, and as she stood, she looked down at him, smirking. "Watch closely, then..." She launched into a different set of moves, intent on seeing how much the mole rat could retain.

Twenty minutes later, she realized it was a lot.

X X X X X X X X

Zorpox was up early, intent on taking care of many of the final details on his plan, getting all the pieces into place; it wouldn't be long until he was all ready for the big reveal. First off, though, was dealing with a certain green villainess. He intended to lay the groundwork for her end, set her up to make sure that she brought about her own downfall. He stealthily made his way to Drakken's lab.

The mad doctor was not up yet, and Zorpox had the place to himself. He chuckled quietly, moving over towards the section of the lab that Shego normally occupied, then looked around, studying her chair. As he looked it over, a small smirk traveled across his face, and he reached out for the chair, quickly putting his plan into motion; soon everything was in place. He knew that this wouldn't be enough to cause Shego to lose control, but a person of her skills would not lose control at a single action-it would take much more.

For this reason, after he was finished, Zorpox made his way back to his room, carefully slipping inside. He walked over to his bed, then reached a hand out for the top of one of the bedposts, carefully gripping and twisting it, unscrewing the top and revealing a small hidden compartment holding the thing that he had acquired the previous day. He reached inside, pulling out the second item he planned to use on Shego, bringing it up to his face as he smirked, then slid it into a pocket.

The caped villain made his way out of his room, then around the corner, until he was outside Shego's door. He looked around, then knocked on the door, not expecting an answer, but careful in case she was in her room. When there was no answer, he smiled, knowing that Shego was an early riser, and usually took any chance she had to sun bathe, swim, or even work out. He quickly keyed in an override that he had created, watching as the door slid open silently. He slipped in as it closed behind him, then moved quickly, intent on finishing his tasks long before she had returned. He was back out the doors within five minutes, and quickly moved down the hallway, passing under an unnoticed security camera.

X X X X

Henchman Bob looked at the screens, his gaze focused on a camera recording a hallway; one that had just caught a particular villain sneaking into Shego's room. He knew that Zorpox should not have had access to the room, and that he had been up to no good. The henchman looked sideways at the other men in the room, and realized that none of them had seen what had happened.

His hand drifted up to a small button marked 'delete' and pressed it.

X X X X

Knowing that there would be no evidence of what had just transpired, the caped villain smirked to himself. As Zorpox made his way down to the hanger, he considered the things that he was going to do for the day. He had just finished sorting the order he was going to do them in when he reached the hanger. He stepped through the doors and stopped in surprise. His hovercar was sitting in the middle of the hanger, just like it had been the last few days, but there was one major difference-Shego was sitting in the pilot's seat.

She had laid the chair back, and it was obvious that she'd been waiting for him. She had a magazine in hand, and her feet on the dash, reading away. She looked up as she heard his footsteps in the empty room. She smirked at him, and stood, easily sliding out of the hovercar. She landed lightly on her feet, standing on the opposite side from Zorpox. As she moved around toward him, she ran her hand across the glistening surface. "This is a really nice hovercar, Zorpox, do you think I could take it out for a spin?"

He glared at her. "Get your hands off my hovercraft."

She grinned. "Your hovercraft?" She drummed her fingers on the hull. "Actually, I'm pretty sure that if you checked it, you'd find Drakken's name on it. That would make it...his." The villainess moved away, strolling up to Zorpox. "I'm sure he'd let you borrow his hovercar. If you asked nicely."

Zorpox wouldn't be baited. He frowned, then asked the obvious question. "What are you doing down here?"

"Nothing much." She gave a little shrug. "Just checking out some of your work. Oh, were you getting ready to go somewhere? You know, I haven't been out of the lair in a while, I don't supposed I could go with you?" She linked her arm in his, giving him a huge smile, but waiting for his negative response.

He opened his mouth, to voice a no, but instead got another idea. "Why I would be delighted to have you accompany me, Shego." Her eyes widened in surprise. "Yes, that sounds like a wonderful idea. But..." he reached his hand over and forced her to release the grip she had on his arm. "...I think that we should keep our interactions...professional, don't you agree?" Now he smirked. "I know that it's hard to resist my obvious charms, but really, dating among co-workers-not such a hot idea. Besides, you're a bit old for me, don't you think?"

Her growl left no doubt what she thought of his actions, but she decided to just play it off; she still wanted to know what he was doing. "Oh, I wouldn't dream of dating _you,_" She practically snarled. "I prefer someone with a little more...maturity."

His next words stopped her cold. "Yeah, I guess I am out of your league-I supposed someone like Drakken would be more your speed." Her hand twitched twice, going through a choking motion, but otherwise she didn't move. He chuckled, then motioned beside her as he hopped in. "Coming, Shego?"

The villainess finally broke out of her daze, and moved forward, getting in next to him. She eyed him carefully, but otherwise said nothing. Zorpox smirked, then threw the hovercraft in motion, nearly causing Shego to fall out at the rapid acceleration. "Did I forget to mention 'hang on'?"

She really wanted to get a hold of something-starting with his neck.

X X X X X X X X

Kim patted her pocket lightly, feeling Rufus's warm body sleeping inside, occasionally twitching as he dreamed about somethings-probably cheese. She was still incredulous at the demonstration the mole rat had given her-he was like a little mini ninja. The teen shrugged to herself, knowing that some things were better left unexplained. She moved her hand away from the pocket holding Rufus, into another, quickly slipping the Kimmunicator out and flipping it on. Wade appeared onscreen instantly.

"Good morning, Kim."

"'Morning, Wade." The teen smirked, realizing that she felt a lot better than she had last night. Maybe now they could get to the bottom of things. "Lets go over what we know."

Her friend nodded. "First, Killigan steals a golf club with a linear director; then, just hours later, the device gets stolen from him by someone. Based on evidence, GJ thinks that it was Monkey Fist, but that makes no sense. Based on the way I figure that the device is going to be used in conjunction with a satellite system, I look for people getting rocket fuels and similar supplies, and come across Dementor getting the needed supplies-then it all gets stolen by a robot just hours later. Am I missing anything?

The teen shook her head. "No, that sounds about right. But does this mean that the Seniors have been planning this the entire time, planning to steal the supplies from each of the villains?"

Wade shrugged. "I can't see how-there's no way you could know that the other villains were getting supplies when they were going to-Dementor hardly ever works with these chemicals, and Killigan getting the golf club at just that time would have been a stroke of luck."

Kim thought for a minute, until another idea hit her. "What if...what if this isn't a case of planning, but a crime of opportunity? What if Killigan or one of the other villains was planning to use the golf club in the satellite system, and the other villians learned about it." Wade frowned, and Kim continued her scenario. "Okay, lets say that Killigan was going to use the satellite system, and Dementor learned about it, and stole the invention. Monkey Fist learned about it too, and wanted to steal it, but he got there too late, and tore the place apart looking for it."

"Or maybe he got there at the same time as Dementor, and there was a fight." Wade supplied, following her logic.

The red head nodded rapidly. She had reached the school, and paused outside the entrance. "And then, after he started getting the rocket fuel, the Seniors saw their opportunity, launching their robot to steal everything they would need. Then all they would have to do was put it all together, and they would have a workable doomsday plot with no work whatsoever."

Her friend tapped his computer. "It's plausible, and it fits the facts. That would explain why everything has been so strange, with all the villains showing up and trying to steal from each other. That's why their plans don't make sense-they've been making it up as they go along, with each piece unrelated to the next."

"Exactly!" Excited, Kim met Wade's eyes. "That means there is still the chance that someone else might steal from the Seniors, like Drakken, so keep an eye on things while I'm at school. Hopefully we'll get the jump on them before something else happens."

"Right." He turned back to his computer screens, already focused on his task. "Have a good day, Kim."

The teen nodded back, then went into the building.

X X X X X X X X

To Shego's surprise, her trip with the caped villain didn't last all that long. They went just far enough to reach the edge of Florida, to an area that was under construction. The whole area looked like it had been abandoned for years, and only now was someone trying to reclaim the place. Cranes were moving around, here and there, lifting and moving supplies that were being used to build new warehouses upon the shore. Zorpox set the hovercar down just out of sight of one of the larger cranes, on the other side of one worn-down warehouse. She looked the building over.

Most of the glass was broken out, some of the metal siding had been pulled off, and the doors squeaked on rusty hinges, slapping against the sides of the building from the slight sea breeze. There was dirt everywhere, and lots of rusty nails and metal, and Shego had to watch where she was stepping. She wondered what Zorpox was doing here, but he gave no indication that he was going to tell her what was going on. With no small amount of caution, she followed him, hoping it wouldn't be a trap.

As she looked around the outside of the building, she noticed that there was a set of railroad tracks running almost straight up to the building. She looked at it closely, and saw that the tracks were forced to run between the gap in two other buildings, but it ended up making a sharp turn right before the building they were going to go in. Zorpox noticed her curiosity.

"They used the tracks to transport goods from the ships-but this place has been abandoned so long, it's hardly ever used. Actually, they're starting to use it again, now, bringing in supplies to rebuild the water front. They're completely automated, so all they had to do was make sure the track was clear-it works well for them." He shrugged, then moved toward the open door of the building. Shego followed.

Once inside, Zorpox moved to the middle of the room, and waited. He didn't wait long, as a half dozen large figures walked in, following a man dressed in a business suit. He looked familiar, and it took Shego a few seconds before it finally clicked-Hank Perkins, the villain temp. It looked like he'd gotten into the villain business proper. Zorpox inclined his head at the man, then opened his mouth. "Do you have the supplies I asked for?"

Shego was only half paying attention, as the men talked back and forth. She was paying more attention to Zorpox, and the way he was acting. He seemed unconcerned about the backup that the man had brought, almost like he had something in mind. If he expected her to help, he would be sorely mistaken. Shego frowned as she heard a train whistle in the distance.

The business man nodded at Zorpox, a completely serious expression on his face. "Yes, I have the supplies, but it's going to cost you double. And I want it in cash, right now."

Zorpox's voice lowered. "Are you trying to change the deal?"

"No, as a new villain, I've decided that it's in my best interests to make some quick profit, and you seemed to be desperate for the supplies. Besides..." He motioned to the figures, and they stepped forward, until Zorpox could look at them. He realized that they were the animated suits of armor that Drakken had used the one time that his henchmen were busy else where. "...lets just say that _you're_ changing the deal, since it's in your best interests."

Shego looked at Perkins, an almost half smirk on her face. She could admire the man, unwilling to back down, even when he didn't have as much experience in the villain game. She could tell that he wasn't bluffing, however, because something about his stance conveyed his confidence-as if the armored knights weren't enough clue. She cocked her head to the side as she heard another whistle, followed by a faint clickity-clack of a train.

"I don't respond well to threats."

Perkins shrugged. "The villain book says this is where I'm supposed to follow through with my threat." He motioned again, and the armored knights moved forward to surround Zorpox. "Are you sure you don't want to change you mind?" The villain looked over his shoulder.

Shego just stood there looking bored. She was leaning against the wall, and had pulled a nail file out from somewhere; she was sharpening her claws. "Shego, are you just going to stand there, or are you going to help me?"

She didn't even look up. "I work for Drakken, not you. You're always so smug, so sure that you've got everything planned out." She finally looked up. "Well, I guess you're not as smart as you thought, are you, getting taken down by a temp. Admit that I'm smarter than you, and beg for my help, and I'll consider it." She watched as his eyes hardened. She was going to enjoy watching him get beat up.

Zorpox turned back to face the henchmen, then considered his options. He knew that the armored knights would be hard to take down, even for Shego-he remembered that Ron had to use a doomsday weapon to save Kim, and even then they had taken a couple of hits before going down. Zorpox wouldn't be able to take them out easily. Of course, he had a plan for that, anyway. He just smirked at Perkins, and waited, doing his best to appear nonthreatening. He looked back at Shego.

She smirked back and waved, still waiting for Zorpox to get attacked. "So, Zorpox, without little Kimmie to help you, what're you going to do? Come on, I'm still waiting for the begging here."

She frowned again as she heard the clacking of the train getting louder. She had very good hearing, probably better than anyone else in the room, and could tell that something wasn't right, but she wasn't sure what. She wondered if it was reinforcements for Perkins, or if maybe Zorpox had some backup in case she didn't help him. She suddenly figured it out, and her eyes widened-by her best guess, the train had to be going at least thirty or forty miles an hour-there was no way it would make the sharp turn outside the building. Her eyes locked with the caped villain's, and Zorpox just smirked.

"Shego, my dear: don't move."

She froze solid-and it was a good thing, too. Barely a second after his command, the train clacking became deafening, then there was a loud crash from that direction. A second after that, the back wall exploded inward. She was so terrified she couldn't move a muscle. It was official, Zorpox was totally insane, and probably suicidal:

He'd caused the train to jump the track, right into the building.

Everything seemed to happen in slow motion. The lead engine broke through the wall, and was directed off to the side, missing Perkins by inches. It slammed into two of the armored figures, crushing them instantly. The engine then rolled six or eight times, before punching out the opposite wall and continuing onward.

This particular train had four cars behind it, full of different supplies. The first car was full of metal beams; it caught the ground and spun up, flinging the metal supports into the air and through the wall and ceiling, creating a number of holes. A second slid to the opposite side the engine had gone-it took out two more of the armored knights, destroying them.

Perkins, in fear, turned and ran away, like he could hope to outrun the rampaging train. Luckily for him, he tripped, spinning and landing on his back. He looked up to see the third train car sail over his head, just missing him. He gasped back, but couldn't move.

The last car was a box shaped vehicle that rolled across the ground, directly toward Zorpox. Just when it seemed like it would hit him, it caught something on the ground and spun into the air, over his head. He watched it, almost amused, as it went up and over, to slam down on the last two knights, smashing them into the concrete. Shego flinched back as the car landed just inches in front of her, the loud noise finally breaking her out of her stupor.

She moved around the box car, to see Zorpox standing over the clearly terrified Perkins. The villain was giving the one-time temp a small smile that sent chills down her back. It was the look of a man that knew he couldn't be beaten. "Perkins, Perkins, what am I going to do with you? Trying to cheat me." He finally took pity on the man. "I hope this has been a valuable lesson for you-don't mess with Zorpox-it can be very dangerous, right?" Perkins nodded back, rapidly. "Good, now, I trust you have the Selenium?" Perkins nodded again, pointing a shaking finger out the door, indicating that it was just outside in a large briefcase.

The caped villain finally dropped him, then went over to get the case. He came back, checking that everything was there, then looked down at Perkins. "You know, I don't think that you're really villain material, Hank-maybe you should try something else, you seem like such a people person-when you're not trying to rip us off. You do get along well with others, maybe you should go into management." He seemed to pause. "Oh, and let it not be said that Zorpox is unfair." He pulled a large envelope out of his pocket. He threw it down on the man's chest. "There's what I promised you, in full. Have a good day now." Perkins took the money, and bolted, leaving Shego and Zorpox standing in the empty warehouse.

The caped villain left, and Shego followed closely. Just as soon as they cleared the building, there was a groan of stressed metal, and it collapsed in on itself, smashing whatever was still inside. Finally Shego couldn't take it anymore, and grabbed Zorpox, spinning him around to face her. "We could have been killed!"

"Come on, Shego, I planned for all of that-I had a shield to protect me." He mused for a second. "Oh. I guess you didn't. Yeah, you could have been killed. My bad." He gave a little shrug, an evil gleam in his eye. "Maybe you'll reconsider next time before asking to come with me." He turned, expecting her to follow.

Shego shuddered. This man was way more dangerous that she had thought-what kind of plan was crashing a train into the building that you're in? It was insane and reckless, and she'd been lucky to escape with her life. They'd all been lucky, no matter what Zorpox had said. She had to admit, though, that he did have a backup plan in case of the double cross-it had just been a little...extreme. Finally, she got in the hovercraft with him.

After climbing in, she looked over at the case. "So, wait, Selenium? What's that for?"

Zorpox set the hovercar in motion, then turned to her. "Selenium can be used to make computers and electronics, just like silicon. It's a semi-conductor, and good for all the chips and processors that they make. Silicon works a lot better than Selinium, but the Selinium's a little less well known-plus it's cheaper, even if it isn't as efficient."

"Not as efficient?" She frowned. "I though that you were all about efficiency. You don't like being wasteful, why would you get something that isn't as good as silicon?"

His grin was decidedly superior. "Ah, now that, my dear, is the real question-what property of Selenium makes it so much better than Silicon?" He leaned in to whisper. "If you can figure that out, you have a good shot at figuring out my plan. Think hard, I'm in no hurry." He relaxed back in his seat, and despite considering it all the way back to the lair, she couldn't come up with anything.

X X X X X X X X

Kim's morning classes passed in a blur, the anticipation of the after school mission combining with her busy schedule making the day go by quickly. As her lunch period rolled around, she managed to snag some edible food from the lunch line. Fortunately, cafeteria lady seemed to be gone for whatever reason-the teen wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth.

She pulled up a seat at her normal table, and was soon joined by Monique. Kim's friend was still a little wary, but the red head shook her head with a small frown. "No cooking tonight, Monqiue, I've got a mission."

The dark haired woman's hesitation disappeared, and she sat with a sour smile. "Good, another stay from the executioner."

The teen growled low in her throat. "So not funny, Monique." She retorted, shaking her head. "It's not like I burned your house down or anything."

Monique sipped her drink. "Right. What scares me is that I don't think you've ever set foot in a kitchen without eventually setting it on fire."

"Ha, ha." She narrowed her eyes. "If this is supposed to inspire confidence, you need some work."

"Confidence, girl? I'm the one playing with death, here. Did you know that one of every five kitchen fires burns a house down? One in five!"

Kim gave a sarcastic smirk. "Well, then I guess we've got four chances to teach me how to cook." She grinned wickedly. "Three now, I guess."

She received a glare back. "Don't even joke, Kim."

The red head gave one last shot.

"Well, at least the mayor didn't pass that law making home insurance void if I cooked in a kitchen."

X X X X X X X X

After Zorpox had gone off to do whatever it was he did, Shego went out in search of Drakken, to try and find some answers. While the mad doctor may not have been the sharpest knife in the drawer, he could still occasionally cut through to the heart of a problem-he was usually good at taking random items and throwing them together in some way to create an end result-if anyone could figure out what Zorpox was doing, he'd be the one.

She finally cornered him in his lab, working on the satellite system. She looked at her employer-he seemed a little...off...but that was probably just Zorpox's helping hand at work. "Yo, Dr D, I got a question-can you take a break?"

"Sure, Shego, what do you need?" Drakken had been trying to keep the peace between the two villains, and it hadn't been easy. Inwardly he cringed, knowing that whatever she was going to ask wouldn't be good.

"What do you use Selenium for?"

He nearly laughed out loud. "Selenium? Well, it's not used for much anymore, but it was used a lot for some older electronics and things. They still used it for some things, like photocopying and what not. I don't really know, why?"

She gave a small shrug. "Just came across something that mentioned it." She frowned like she was having trouble remembering something. "The article said something about it having a unique property, that would make it better than silicon in making stuff."

"Oh, really?" Drakken got the far away look he usually wore when he was trying to solve some difficult problem. "Well, the only thing that comes to mind is that it's still being used in surge protectors and things-it's electrical capabilities are different from Silicon's." He gave a shrug to match Shego's. "I guess it could be used to protect something from a power surge or something that might destroy a silicon-made product."

"Oh." She blinked-could that be the characteristic that Zorpox was thinking of? She kind of doubted it-the way he was talking, she would think that it was something obvious that she would get as soon as she figure it out-she still couldn't see a use for the Selenium.

Drakken looked at her, deep in thought. "Shego, how are you and Zorpox getting along?" The villainess gave a growl, then sat in her chair. She heard a slight creaking, so she shifted her weight.

"We're getting along as well as can be expected." She ground her teeth together. "There's just something about that buffoon that bothers me. You have to know he's planning on double crossing you."

Drakken waved his hand. "Of course he wants to double cross me, but he can't-my headband will prevent that." Shego snorted, and the mad doctor looked at her indignantly. "Hey, don't be snippy-my inventions work, they do...I just have a teensy problem with the little things."

"Yeah, right. Putting a doomsday laser in a space station, then giving it a circling platform that will let it fire back _into_ the space station is a 'little problem.'" She shifted again, the seat feeling unusually hard today.

Drakken threw his hands in the air. "How was I supposed to know that Kim had that launcher thing in her boot?" He looked up as Zorpox walked in. "I mean, you didn't know about it, did you?"

Zorpox gave him a sidelong glance, and Shego started to chuckle, shifting her weight again. This time there was a mighty creaking noise, then a snap, and suddenly she found herself laying on the ground. She had managed to hit her head on the way down, and things were a little fuzzy. As her vision cleared, she noticed her caped foe standing over her, a grin on his face. "Hmm, Shego, been eating a bit too much of my food, have you? Put on a bit of weight? Don't worry, I'm sure that Kim'll help you work it off-you know, if you can keep up with her."

The villainess sprang to her feet, a glowing hand raised to point at Zorpox. "I'll have you know that I weigh the same now as I did in high school."

"Oh really?" He smirked. "You can remember that far back? Or maybe it's how you weigh yourself-you do know that when you're checking your weight, you step _both_ feet on the scale, right?"

"Least I've got some muscle." She poked him in the chest, hard. "What've you got, these little noodle things?" She grabbed his arm, lifting it. To her surprise, she sensed more muscle there than she expected. He whipped his arm away, and she smirked. "We all know you're a wimp-look at how you're always getting saved by a girl."

"That 'girl' always puts you in your place, Shego, and she weighs quite a bit less than you do. You sure that's muscle you've got?"

She brandished her claws in front of his face. "Want to find out?"

"Hmm...Pass." Zorpox considered her figure carefully, and she was extremely irritated when he seemed to dismiss her, turning away to grab something from a nearby table. "Now, could you step to the left, my dear? You seem to be in my light."

"In your light?" She growled low, then brought her hand up, her glow power in full effect. "I'll show you 'In my light'!"

Zorpox finally seemed to realize that she was angry with him. "What's wrong, Shego?" He looked over at the broken chair. "Did you hit your head or something?"

"You!" She snarled, clenching a fist. "You're the reason my chair collapsed-you're lucky I didn't get hurt."

Her caped foe looked outraged. "My fault? You're saying I made the chair collapse? Shego, please, I'm above pulling some petty prank-besides..." He went over and picked up the chair, holding it up for a closer inspection. "It looks to me like this chair was rewelded-very poorly, I might add."

Shego turned to look at Drakken, and realized that the blue villain was wearing a sheepish expression. "All right, Dr D, what did you do?"

He sort of hesitated, looked around, then finally spoke while staring at his feet. "Well, Shego, all the times that Kim Possible blows up our liar, all the furniture and things get destroyed too. I can't keep forking out money for all that, so I've been repairing the chairs. I...uh, guess I didn't do a very good job on that one."

Zorpox grinned, giving her a superior look. "I do believe an apology is in order, Shego, my dear."

"The day I say 'I'm sorry' to you is the day I dye my hair red and dress up like Kimmie."

The teen just shrugged. "Whatever, Shego-just remember-don't go accusing someone unjustly-it might just bite you in the end." He snapped his teeth together in front of her face.

She pointed a finger at him, her eyes narrowed. "This isn't over Zorpox-trust me." She stormed out, her rapid steps taking her out of the room. After Shego left, Zorpox shrugged at the other villain, then walked over to one of the satellites and began fiddling with it's electronics. He had other things to do, but need to keep up appearances-he was working on this 'plan' after all.

Besides, he wanted to be around when Shego found his latest surprise.

X X X X X X X X

After school, Kim found herself in a small plane, looking down at the Kimmunicator, a half frown, half smile on her face. Wade decided the look was rather disconcerting. "All right, Wade, run it by me one more time, so I'm sure about this...you're sure this is safe, right?"

He just shrugged. "Probably about as safe as anything else you've ever done. Okay, you'll bail from the plane in your suit, and glide into Senior's Island. His new radar system is set up to detect slower moving objects, so as long as you come in over the island fast enough, then pull your parachute, you should be able to sneak in under the radar, and not alert them. Since most of the time you parachute straight in, this should keep them from figuring out you're there until it's too late."

With a nod, she pulled the squirrel suit on, quickly zipping it up, then slipping her backpack parachute on. She knew that the backpack would make her less aerodynamic, so she would have to compensate with her flying, by being very careful to keep the wind under her, and not blowing across her back. She had done it before, but very rarely. Finally finished, she walked over to the hatch on the side, and opened it up, launching herself into the air.

Instantly she was hit with a wall of air that almost caused her to roll over, and she had to spread her body widely to keep herself centered. She flailed her arms wildly for a few seconds, before finally finding her equilibrium. Slight adjustments from here were able to direct her to the far off Senior's island. Kim looked through the faceplate of her helmet, judging her descent as best she could; then her eyes fixed on the heads up display built into the helmet. One hundred, twenty-three miles per hour.

She frowned to herself, then brought her arms in closer to her body, and tilted herself downward, doing her best to gain speed. Within a few seconds, she had passed over the one hundred and sixty-five mile per hour mark that put her outside the radar's range. Unfortunately, this hastened her descent-now she didn't have nearly enough height to keep up her speed, and deploy her parachute. With her descent, she would just barely make the edge of the island.

Kim opened her arms wide, hoping the air would catch her and lift her upwards. To her surprise, she was able to get a slight lift by doing this, and realized that she was now back on course for her landing. Her actions came at a price, however, as she realized that she was losing speed. One hundred eighty-four miles per hour.

With a grimace, she realized that she needed to lose as much weight as she could, to try and keep her descent as minimized as possible. Using the smallest of movements, she reached one hand up, slightly behind her, in an attempt to grip the handle of her hair-dryer grappler. Her hand had almost touched it, when she veered slightly, her body positioning causing her dynamics to change drastically. One hundred seventy-eight miles per hour.

Tilting her body carefully, she arrived back on track, then carefully craned her upper body backwards; she managed to get a few precious seconds of lift, and she realized that she had plenty of height now, if only her speed would hold out. Her last movement had lowered her speed almost into the danger zone for detection. One hundred seventy-three miles per hour and dropping.

A bright red and blue blur shot over the edge of the island, traveling at a dropping one hundred and seventy miles per hour. Kim reached her hand upward to touch the edge of the loop on the pullstring, and hesitated until she was right on target. Waited a heartbeat more... She tugged, sharply, and felt a quick jerk as her body stopped it's headlong thrust into the villain's lair. She let loose a slight gasp, at the feeling of pressure, and at the adrenaline rush. As she dropped, she looked to her HUD, and smirked. One hundred and sixty eight point four three miles per hour-she'd have to thank the Seniors for a very wild ride.

X X X X

Kim landed lightly, her body dropping into a crouch. She was inside the Seniors lair, and near as she could tell, undetected. She quickly looked around from her position, doing her best to spot the lasers, cameras, and other devices the Seniors were sure to have installed. With a frown, she hoped she wouldn't have to deal with their spinning tops of doom-out of all the villainous devices she had ever dealt with, that was the one that left her the most exhausted.

Quickly she rolled up her parachute, stuffing it into her backpack; she then lifted her hand up and unzipped the squirrel suit she was wearing, revealing her mission clothes underneath. The squirrel suit joined the parachute in the backpack. Quickly, she donned the backpack, then looked around the open courtyard that made up the Senior's lounge. She quickly looked around, her eyes darting here and there, spotting Junior's lounge chair, before her eyes found the door into the inner depths of their house.

She moved forward silently, carefully crossing the courtyard, waiting for some sort of attack, but it never came. Finally reaching the door, she felt somewhat safer, realizing that she was still undetected. A quick motion with her hand, and she had the sliding door open; she slipped inside, then paused as it whooshed close behind her, leaving her in a darkened hall. She glanced around, then crouched carefully, and set off down the hall, keeping to the shadows and edges that hid her from view.

X X X X X X X X

The green villainess stalked out of the lab, her emotions leaving her in a red haze. Somehow she found herself in the lair workout room, facing off against a handful of Drakken's Destructobots. The robots had been all but useless for his take-over-the-world scheme, but she had managed to convince him to keep a few handy so that she could work out without having to hold back.

She let her hands glow up to their max power, focusing on the first of the robots as it charged toward her. She hesitated, then let her glow vanish-she was going to take these out the hard way, pure brute force and sheer anger. She allowed herself to let loose as she hadn't in a long time.

A single backflip set her outside the first robot's range; a second had her flipping over an extended arm that intended to cut her in half. She landed on her feet just behind its arm, then stabbed out with her claws, cutting deeply into its shoulder, quickly ripping into its innards. She speared the bots CPU, ripping the core to shreds, disabling the robot.

The second one charged her, and she was able to fade backwards, deflecting its motions with her superior speed and strength. While the robot could easily break her bones if they connected, she was able to route the force away, giving her just the time she needed to keep safe. Finally she let herself kick out, hitting its head just under the 'chin.' She found the one area of the robot that wasn't metal, crunching and overloading its circuits as the head snapped back. It fell, out of commission.

Finally there were just two left; one made a sweeping motion toward her. She pivoted, sliding in close so that she could avoid most of the impact; she then grabbed and twisted the arm, ripping it out of the robot's shoulder. She kicked it, the force sending the Destructobot backwards to smash into a wall. She spun to the last one and slammed it with the arm she held, turning the last robot into expensive scrap.

Suddenly the room was silent save for her deep, panting breaths. While she could have fried the things with nothing more than her glow power, it wouldn't have been nearly as therapeutic. As it was, she was nearly exhausted, her body tense where she had pushed herself near her limit; she'd been acting purely on instinct, instead of acting intelligently.

Most of her fights with Kim started as a cleverly thought out attack, counters, feints and the lot thrown in to her advantage; sometimes, however, the fights degenerated into a full-out brawl. She wouldn't admit it to herself, but she particularly enjoyed those fights, when they were both acting solely on instincts, letting things happen as they did. She was much more spontaneous than she would care to reveal-give her a straight fight any day, she hated all this sneaking around.

Shego made her way back to her room, thinking about Zorpox, and Kim. No, sneakiness she was good at, but not this stuff the villain did-convoluted plans, they were as bad as politics-where one man said something, but it could mean dozens of different things in hundreds of different contexts. Zorpox was about as slippery as any lawyer she had ever met-then again, he was also smarter than any lawyer, too. He kept finding that little loophole that ruined her credibility, while enhancing his own.

She finally made it back to her room, and quickly decided that she would shower, then relax for the rest of the afternoon and evening. Drakken owed her that, didn't matter what that sidekick said. She quickly stripped, then stepped into her shower-while a nice hot bath would feel a lot better, she was still sort of leery of actually soaking herself-she wasn't entirely sure that Zorpox wasn't serious about frying her in her bathtub-a shower seemed safer.

It didn't take long for the water to warm up to the temperature she liked it-almost hot enough to scald. She liked the slight burning tingle; it indicated to her that she was getting clean. She quickly lathered up, then absentmindedly grabbed her shampoo, squirting some out and rubbing it into her hair. It was a special brand that she used, designed to give her hair the look and sheen that kept it perfect. She spent a few minutes lost in thought before she finally rinsed it out, then turned the water off.

Shego reached out of the shower and grabbed a nearby towel, wrapping it around her head to dry her hair. She grabbed a second towel and dried herself off, then pulled her favorite green robe off its hook. She quickly cinched it up, then took care of the other things that she did after a workout. Once she was done, she slipped into one of her jumpsuits, and went back into her bathroom to take care of her hair. She pulled the towel off, and reached into her drawer for a brush. She finally looked in the mirror.

"DRAKKEN!"

* * *

_**A/N **Well, any guesses as to why Shego's so mad?_

_Another key part of his plan being revealed here, a few more things, and he'll be ready to launch his plot._


	13. Anger Issues

**_A/N _**_Lots of good guesses on what Zorpox did in Shego's room, some closer than others. Kudos to zafnak, who got it on the dot. Read on to find out how Shego reacts to what she's found._

_Thanks to Eddy13 for beta checking._

* * *

**CHAPTER 13: Anger Issues**

_(Thursday Afternoon-Week 2)_

"DRAKKEN!"

The blue scientist looked up, his eyes full of fear. He recognized that tone-Shego was mad, and probably on her way to kill him. Drakken looked over at Zorpox, and the other villain seemed to be just as confused. The doctor turned and looked over to the door waiting for his sidekick. When she appeared, he whimpered. She looked at them both, eyes narrowed into slits. "If this is supposed to be a practical joke, someone is going to die. Painfully." Drakken cowered away.

Zorpox, however, was actually amused. "Well, Shego, you're looking rather festive." He cocked his head to the side. "Isn't it a little late for Christmas?"

Drakken turned to Zorpox, his mouth agape. _How could he say something so stupid? _He looked at Shego, though, and did think she looked...Christmasy. She was dressed as normal, green and black jumpsuit, clawed gloves and the works, save that her hair was wet...well, wet and _red. _

"You! You did this, didn't you?" Her voice had gone incredibly soft-Drakken had only heard this tone once before-when he accidentally deleted all her music files when he was formatting the lair computer-and he'd been lucky to escape with his life. Drakken looked at Zorpox, then to Shego, and decided that he really didn't want to be here. He bolted out of the room without looking back.

Zorpox just shrugged at her question. "You'll accuse me of anything, won't you? I've been busy, how could I have dyed your hair?" he chuckled again. "It really is a nice shade of red. Almost the same as Kim's..." With a yell, Shego charged forward, all rational thought gone-all she could think of was gutting Zorpox. She slashed forward with her claws.

They stopped a few inches away from his chest. No matter how hard she strained her arms, she couldn't rip into him. Her whole body was tensed, her arms straining with a force that even Kim would have trouble stopping-and the weirdest thing of all was that Zorpox hadn't even moved. He just stood with crossed arms, and watched her tire herself out, finally regaining some semblance of composure, if not losing her anger.

Finally he reached down and tapped his belt. "Ferro-Magnetic field generator. You know, Shego, the next time you make claws for your gloves, don't make them out of a magnetic metal." He actually reached out and ran his hand across the gloves. He pulled his hands back sharply when her fingers began to glow.

Shego's fingers began to glow brighter and brighter, followed by her entire hand. Finally her gloves flared up brightly, then disintegrated completely. She reached out and grabbed Zorpox with her bare hands. She grinned in malicious pleasure as she finally saw uncertainty in Zorpox's eyes. She lifted him high in the air. "Weren't expecting that, were you?"

"No, I wasn't." He admitted, with a slight shrug. "Congratulations, Shego, you managed to surprise me." He now looked unconcerned. "I'll admit, I'm impressed. I figured that Kimberly Ann would be the only one that could surprise me. Maybe she's not as far out of your league as I thought."

Her hands, dangerously close to his neck, began glowing again. Zorpox didn't know quite how her glow power worked, but he could swear that there was heat emanating from them. He reached his own hands up, and gripped her arm just below the glow. She felt a pin prick on her arms, then lost all feeling in her limbs. She dropped Zorpox to the ground, and he fell to one knee. He stood back up, then dusted himself off. "You know, I wasn't completely truthful with you earlier in the lab." He gave a little shrug. "I was updating my wardrobe." He posed. "Wouldn't want to be out of style, would I?"

"What...did you do to me?" The paralysis had crept up her arms, leaving her limbs deadened. She considered trying to kick him, but was afraid that he'd do the same thing to her legs that he'd done to her arms. She just stood there, uncertain.

"Paralyzing agent-my own design. Well, actually it's based on a snake's poison, but that's neither here nor there. Don't worry, it's completely reversible-if you have the antidote." He reached into his belt, and pulled out a small green vial. "That would be this...oh, wait." He tapped his chin twice. "Without your arms working, you can't drink it, can you? Dear, dear, this won't work, why you'll need my help to drink it."

"I'd rather eat Kimmie's cooking!"

Zorpox chuckled. "That can be arranged." He held the vial up. "Drink up."

She twisted her head away. "How do I know that it isn't poisoned?"

"Come now, Shego, if I really wanted to hurt you, there's not a lot you can do to stop me, is there?" She conceded the point and tipped her head to allow Zorpox to pour it in her mouth. He raised the vial as if to pour, then paused. She growled low in her throat.

"You know, Shego, it occurs to me that you're completely helpless right now. If you want this vial, I'm going to need something in return. A good faith gesture, if you will."

"Like what?" She asked, eyes narrowed.

"You, me. Dinner, six tonight."

Of all the things that Zorpox could have asked, this was the only one she would never have expected. She began laughing uncontrollably. "W-w-wait, are you serious? Are you hitting on me?"

Zorpox frowned in return. "What...no, no, eww, no, I'm not hitting on you-you're like way older than I am." He seemed to consider her in a different light. "Not that you aren't attractive...especially with that red hair..." He shook his head to clear his mind. "No, I just want to talk. I mean, we're both sidekicks, right, Shego? I help Kimberly, you help Drakken, I just want to talk about that." He leaned in close. "I'll be completely honest-I miss her."

Shego pulled back in surprise at the complete and total loneliness she saw behind his eyes. Zorpox continued, "I mean, Drakken's not that big on talking about anything other than superweapons and 'I'm going to take over the world' monologues...and the henchmen, well, they just don't talk much period. But you, you and I, we're kindred spirits. All three of us, well, four if you count Ron, we're more alike than any of us want to admit. Besides being evil, bitter, and a little taller, you are what I expect Kim to be like in ten years...or is it twenty? Twenty-five?"

"I'm not that old!"

"Right, right...So, do we have a deal-one night, one simple dinner-I'll cook of course-to get feeling back in your arms. Is it worth it?" She growled and thought long and hard, but finally nodded. Zorpox tipped the vial forward and Shego drank the nasty liquid. Slowly feeling returned to her arms, then her hands and fingers. She flexed a few times, then snapped her arm out in a punch, catching Zorpox across the face. He dropped back and rubbed his jaw.

"Yeah, it's a date." She turned and stalked off, leaving Zorpox on the floor. He got up and smiled to himself, then called Drakken back in to continue working.

X X X X X X X X

After nearly fifteen minutes of searching, Kim was starting to get slightly frustrated. She had forgotten how much money the Seniors had, and how big their islands were-she hadn't seen heads or tails of either of them, despite the numerous areas she had visited. Bowling lanes, an indoor ski-field, there was even a golf course built on the small island. She finally worked herself down another hallway, and happened to come across a much more familiar area.

She walked out into the open space, realizing that it was the place she most often fought the Seniors, a large meeting room, it seemed much more sinister with the addition of a small moat, an upper railing and catwalk, and, of course, the large number of ceiling mounted motion sensitive laser defenses. In all, this was the one place that she never felt safe, even just standing still-there was enough weaponry here to outfit all of GJ-with enough left over to liberate a couple of Third World countries.

Seeing that the Seniors weren't here, she made her way around the room, then up to the second level, where she had spotted a large, multi-screened computer. She moved forward carefully, keeping an eye out for the villains, but realized she was relatively safe. Finally, she stood in front of the computer and hit a couple of keys, seeing if she could turn it on and get some information. She had no sooner touched one of the buttons when she heard a 'snap' then a 'whish' from behind her.

Kim started to turn, but felt something impact her arms, then legs, clamping around them with an audible 'click.' Four long, metal appendages had shot out of the wall, and now they drug her backwards, to snap her against the wall, her body pulled tight and unable to move. With a low growl, she mentally berated herself for being so stupid. Idly, she wondered if Ron would have set the trap off, or if his dumb skills would have come into a play. A half shrug, and she decided to ignore the question, instead shaking her body rapidly.

The action was enough to wake up Rufus, and the little mole rat poked his head out; then, once he realized the sitch, he hopped out and made his way upwards to stand on Kim's shoulder looking at her. She gave him a mildly tweaked expression. "Rufus, see if you can find some sort of release for this thing."

He gave her his best salute, then turned, ready to prance off and start his look. Instead, they both heard voices in the distance, and Rufus took the opportunity to dash down off of her, then into the shadows. Seconds later a figure came into view, and Kim groaned. While she didn't really like any of the villains, there was always something about Junior that put her on edge-maybe it was because he was what many women considered totally hot-and yet seemed to have the brain power and attention span of a gnat. She sighed as he stopped in front of her, finally realizing she was hanging there.

"Kim Possible? What are you doing here?"

She rolled her eyes. "Oh, you know, just hanging around." He blinked at her. "Could you get me down, please and thank you."

Surprisingly, he moved forward, seemingly ready to do as she had requested. He had nearly touched the release button when he paused, and looked at her. She looked back, giving him her best pleading look. His resolve seemed to weaken, but then he finally frowned.

"No, I shouldn't let you go-Papi would be so cross if I let you escape." He finally pulled his hand away, then looked back at her. "I am sorry, my blue fox, but I must get him and see what he wants to do. You wait here." He was off in a flash.

Kim narrowed her eyes at his retreating back. "Sure, not like I have anywhere else to be."

X X X X X X X X

Shego frowned, looking over her clothes. Normally she would just wear one of her jumpsuits to a meal-that's what she did with Drakken, after all. The more she thought about it, however, the more she felt that she needed to dress up. It would work on so many levels-she could show that she was taking Zorpox seriously, that she trusted him (even if she didn't) by showing up in a dress, which would be difficult to fight in. She had watched him look her over, and knew that Zorpox considered her more than 'attractive.' Shego figured if she dressed up just right, she might be able to keep him off balance, distract him with her charms. Maybe then she could figure out what he was up to.

Of course, that would only work if she could find something to wear. _Too revealing, too modest, too short, too long, and where the heck did that come from? _She reached in and pulled out a horrible looking frilly pink dress. _I don't even like pink_. She clenched the dress in her fist and used her glow power to burn it to a crisp. She had just about given up hope when she pulled out a nice dress, black and green of course. She held it up. Perfect.

She heard a knock at her door, and frowned. What was that? She walked over and opened the door, then frowned at the man standing there. "What do you want?" She snarled, giving him the evil eye.

He hesitated back, then, hands shaking, held something out for her. She frowned, snatching the small box from him, then slamming the door in his face, not even waiting to see if he left. She walked over to her counter nearby and placed the box down, then realized that there was a small letter taped to the side.

_Shego, while I think the red hair is lovely, it just isn't you. I'm sure you agree, so I just whipped up a little something for you-should get rid of that dyed hair-mix a couple of drops of that in your normal shampoo, and it should render the hair dye inert, as well as change your hair back to its normal black. Best of luck, and you can trust me, really..._

_-Zorpox_

She frowned, unsure. Could she really trust him? She reached in and pulled out the small vial inside the container, and looked it over. She knew that there was no way he could have whipped this fix up in such a short amount of time-he had to have been the one that planted the dye in the first place, so of course he would have the fix. Finally deciding that nothing ventured, nothing gained, she followed the other villain's instructions.

X X X X X X X X

Fortunately, if there was one thing that Junior did do well, it was complaining to his father. Within a few minutes, the elder Senior had joined his son, and now both were standing in front of Kim. To the teen's surprise, Senior reached up to push the button on the wall, and her restraints were released, dropping her lightly to the floor. She looked at him quizzically. "Um, not that I'm complaining...exactly...but are you letting me go?"

"Why of course, Ms Possible, I am not ready for you yet." The billionaire looked at her with a smile. "My evil scheme will not be ready for another week, so there is no reason to capture you and play out our tradition villain and captive roles. Perhaps when you are back next week, we can continue this discussion." He frowned slightly. "Now, I must ask, why are you here?"

After a slight hesitation, Kim finally decided to tell them why she had come; she explained about the robot, it's expense, and how Wade figured that only the Seniors could afford it. The villains seemed to muse for a moment. "While I will admit to owning three of this robot you seem to be looking for, all of them are accounted for. In fact, I had planned to use them on another villainous enterprise, but decided not to-there were other ways to go about securing the necessary items."

"Oh." Kim looked unsure whether to believe him, but as she thought about it, she realized that even as a villain, Senior was surprisingly honest about what he was doing, why, and how. She was inclined to believe him. Finally she nodded with a sheepish grin. "I guess I should have just called you, instead?"

The billionaire nodded. "That would have been a good idea, Ms Possible, but it does not seem to be a common thought to many people-just a few days ago, Drakken himself stopped by to see if we had received a letter. Sadly, it seems it was lost in the mail."

"Whoa, hold the phone-Drakken was here?"

Senior blinked at her outburst. "Yes, he came by to inquire about my son joining them for their weekly Karaoke night. Unfortunately, we are too busy, and I had to decline. We did have a delightful time, though, discussion you, Ms Possible, and some of our villainous exploits."

"Swell." She looked around, before finally forcing her gaze back to the villain. "So you two really didn't do anything? He just dropped by to check on some Karaoke night thing?" Senior nodded, and Kim frowned in thought. "Did anything weird happen while he was here?"

The billionaire shook his head. "Not to my knowledge, we just discussed things. Although, some of the cameras stopped working. It was an unusual occurrence-they are very expensive, and manufactured well-they should not have failed."

"Oh, okay." Inwardly, Kim thought this information over-Drakken drops by, then the cameras go out? Too much of a coincidence. She figured that Shego had used the discussion as an opportunity to steal something from the Seniors for Drakken. Knowing the blue villain's money situation, she figured it was likely that Drakken had been out of cash, and had used this as a means to steal some money. "Um, I guess I'll just be leaving, then."

"Very well, Ms Possible, do you have transportation? If not, I'm sure I could acquire something for your use."

Somewhat surprised at his generosity, she shook her head. Really, though, she knew she shouldn't be surprised-despite his interest in villainy, Senior was nothing if not a gentleman. "No, I've already gotten something set up. Thank you, though."

"Well, then it would be my honor to escort you to your rendezvous. A gentleman never leaves a lady unescorted on his property."

The redhead gave him a half smirk. "You mean you just don't want to leave me alone in your lair, do you?"

He smiled back and waved a hand in front. "Of course, Ms Possible, I cannot let you spoil all of my surprises. I trust you will return in a week in your attempt to foil my plot..."

X X X X X X X X

Shego slipped down the hallways carefully, keeping an eye out for any of the henchmen, or even worse, Drakken. Twice she had to hide in rooms to avoid the wandering men. _What do they do all the time, just walk around?_. Finally she reached Zorpox's door and knocked quietly. It opened with a whoosh, and Zorpox paused at her attire. It was only a momentary hesitation, then he escorted her in. He motioned to a table in the middle of the room, then pulled the chair out for Shego to sit in. She eyed him warily, then sat.

"You're a little early, Shego, it'll take me a minute or two to finish up." He turned, then went off to finish the food.

If Zorpox was a little surprised at her outfit, she was even more surprised at his. He was dressed in Ron's signature clothing, and even his skin looked the natural color. She frowned to herself-maybe he really was serious about talking, just the two of them. "So, Zorpox, what're we having?"

He brought two plates over, placing one in front of her, then sat, putting the other in front of him. She took a deep breath of the wonderful food.

Shego couldn't help but glance at his clothing again, and he gave her a faint smile. "I figured you'd be more comfortable with Ron than with Zorpox." She frowned but didn't say anything. He continued. "So...um, it looks like your hair is back to normal."

She wasn't sure what to say. Finally, she settled on something. "I'd thank you, but I know you did it in the first place. I'll just leave it at this-we've still got a truce until tonight is over. After that, you're mine."

Zorpox, or rather 'Ron' fluttered his eyes at her and grinned. "Aww, that's so sweet, I didn't think you cared."

Her hand twitched, and she clenched it into a fist. "That's not what I meant, and you know it. Besides-mine? I thought that you were Kimmie's little lap dog?"

He wore a hurt look. "Now, now, Shego, you leave Kimberly out of this, and I'll leave Drakken out of it, fair? This isn't about them, it's about us." He changed the subject. "So, what do you like to do in your off time-besides kicking puppies and filing your nails?"

She narrowed her eyes. "It's kinda hard for me to go out-green skin and all." She reached over and took a sip of her drink, then looked at it, startled.

"I'm told it's a lovely wine." Ron gave a little shrug. "I wouldn't know, not being of the legal age and all." A small smirk. "I found it in Drakken's stuff-bet he never even drinks it." He poked at his food a little, then looked back at her. "So, you don't really want to talk about yourself, what do you want to talk about?"

She smirked back. "I suppose asking for Kimmie's deepest, darkest secret is out of the question." She tapped her chin with the end of the fork, then looked down at her plate. "Tell me about how you started cooking."

Ron shrugged. "Not much to tell, really. I've always been a little...odd..." She snorted, and he glared at her. "...but I always just do things that I like to do. Actually..." He leaned in across the table like it was a big secret. "I think that my mom always wanted a little girl. I've never told anyone this, except Kim, but it wasn't until I was seven or eight that I realized that pink was supposed to be a girl's color. I had my parents paint my room after that." He smiled slightly. "Since then, blue's really been more my color-don't you agree?"

"Anyway, one gift that my parents had for me was a quicky bake Granny Crocket bake set. I started cooking from there, making cupcakes and things for all my friends." He smiled. "Finally I ran out of the cooking stuff that came with the baking set, so I just up and decided to use the stuff in the big kitchen. The rest, as they say, is history." He took a drink, then looked at her expectantly. "So, what about you-any secret hobbies?"

"Well..." She looked a little uncomfortable. She hadn't really given any sort of thought to what she would talk about, figuring that the other villain would be all about taunting her. Now that he actually seemed to be interested, she was at a loss. She finally picked something that wasn't all that embarrassing. "I like to listen to music."

He gave her a small smile. "All stolen, of course."

"No, actually." She wasn't sure why this was suddenly a big deal, but she didn't want him to think that. "No, I pay for all my music." She gave a small shrug. "I kind of think of it as an incentive for them to keep making the music I like-steal it all, and they don't get money-and then they quit playing."

"True." Ron said, then grinned at her. "Of course, that doesn't tell me what type of music you're interested in. Classical? Rap? Folk-dance?"

She made a face at the last one. "You ever play folk-dance music, I'll kill you." She hesitated, then pushed ahead. "Well, sometimes I listen to MC Honey."

Ron stood, to clean the table off, while Shego leaned back in her chair. "I met her once...well, twice, I guess, but Kim and I were busy with other things. She seemed fairly nice, but was a little hard to understand." He gave a small laugh. "And I thought Monique speak was confusing."

"Monique?" Shego asked, intrigued. "Who's that?" She let a small grin spread on her face. "Is she a girlfriend?"

"Who, Monique?" Surprised, he shook his head. "She's okay, I guess, I never really thought about her that way. I guess she is pretty hot...nothing like Kim though."

"Ooooh!" She smirked. "I guess the sidekick really does have the hots for little Kimmie." By this point, Ron had sat back down, and she leaned over the table. His eyes went wide. "I don't know why you'd be interested in her, when there are so many women that would be willing to give you a chance." She practically purred as his face went red. "Tell me, bad boy, Kim...or me?"

It was a choked gasp. "K-kim."

Shego pulled back, almost disappointed. "Really? Well, you don't know what you're missing, Stoppable. Of course, it would have never worked between us anyway-I'm so far out of your league. So's Kimmie for that matter."

Ron seemed to regather his courage. "True-but Kimberly is more out of my league that you are." She narrowed her eyes at him as he continued. "I could see myself settling with someone like you-since I wouldn't have a chance with Kim."

"Settling?" She leaned across the table, all pretense gone. "Listen, buster, I'm ten times the woman Kim is-heck, I'm ten times the woman she'll ever be! You want me to believe you'd take a flat chested tomboy over me?"

Ron leaned away from her. "Now, now, Shego, we're just having a discussion. No need to take insult because you're not as attractive as Kim." The teen grew alarmed as Shego's eye started to twitch.

"Not. As. ATTRACTIVE?"

"Uh oh..."

X X X X

Henchmen Bob was wandering the halls, part of his normal rounds. He really didn't have a lot to do right now, and was just killing some time-usually he just sat in the command center and watched the different cameras for activity. He was only walking around because he needed to stretch his legs.

He turned the corner, and noted that he had reached the section of the lair that housed the rooms Shego and Zorpox used, as well as some of the extra bedrooms. He had just started down the hall when he heard a loud whine come from behind one door.

Bob had to shield his eyes as a glaring burst of green plasma blew the door off its hinges. It slammed into the wall across from the doorway, and as he looked closer, he realized that there was actually a figure plastered against that door-at first he wasn't familiar with the man, but a closer look revealed that it was Zorpox, without the blue skin. He was still considered what to do when he heard another noise.

Shego stalked out of the room, her glowing hands and even walk showing that she was furious. She stepped forward, and watched as Zorpox sank to the floor; she bent over him. She spoke in hushed, emphatic tones, and the henchmen was unable to hear what was said. Finally she straightened, then walked by the henchmen, taking just enough time to shove him into the wall. The man bounced off, and after shaking his head, he moved over to give Zorpox a confused glance.

Zorpox looked up at Bob, and shrugged. "Guess that's a touchy subject."

X X X X X X X X

Wade looked at the red head in surprise. "Gee, that was fast, I think that was a record."

Kim shook her head. "The Seniors didn't do it, Wade, which means it was someone else. By the way, pencil in the Seniors for next week, it looks like they have a plot in the works."

"Will do." He said, then watched as Kim flinched. "Sorry, I meant I'll get it done. Kim?"

After hearing the name of the Global Justice agent, Kim frowned, as she thought about her early discussions with the overconfident agent. She remembered how she had cut him off, when he had said he learned who attacked Killigan. She wondered if maybe it wasn't Dementor who had attacked the other villain, but Drakken instead. "Speaking of Will Du, can you get me a connection with him, I have a quick question."

Wade blinked at the odd request, and wondered if maybe Kim was going to poke some more fun at the agent, or give him a piece of her mind. He shrugged to himself, then nodded at Kim, quickly pulling up the correct contact information. Seconds later, the smug agent appeared on the Kimmunicator screen.

"Ms Possible-do you need my assistance with something?"

Kim rolled her eyes. "Agent Du, was it Drakken that attacked Killigan?"

His eyes widened almost imperceptibly. "What makes you think that?" After seeing Kim's knowing grin, he grimaced. "How did you figure that out? That information hasn't even been put into the base computer yet. Tell me, how did an amateur get the information that it took our agents days to figure out?"

She smirked. "What can I say, I'm just good at putting the pieces together." Finally, after all her frustrations with the agent, she couldn't help but poke a little fun. "Besides, you kind of gave it away with your poker face there, Agent Du." She smiled sweetly. "Aren't top agents supposed to be able to conceal their emotions so that they can't be read?" Kim cut the link.

Du stared at the screen angrily. "Why must she irk me so?"

"You're just so irkable." The agent spun around at the sense of Deja Vu, quickly shaking his head as he realized that Dr Director was standing behind him. She was smiling, but had a hint of warning there, as well. "She's right, you know-she could easily read you emotions there. Of course, that's part of what makes her such a good agent-even if she is an _amateur._" She made the word sound more like a title of authority than the insult Du always considered it.

Dr Director motioned with her hand. "Leave this one to Kim Possible-she started it, so it's only right that she gets to finish things." Du nodded grudgingly, knowing his own feelings when someone else took over an assignment from him. "I have a mission for you, as well, Agent Du, and it could use someone of your unique skills." The top agent turned and matched pace with her, following as she explained.

X X X X

After getting a ride back from Seniors island, it was getting rather late in the evening by the time Kim got home. She had managed to catch a ride with Bernice outside the island; the woman had landed her sea plane just off shore, and Kim had quickly swam out, climbing aboard for the trip back. It had taken a few hours, but soon the plane had passed over Middleton, and Kim had bailed out.

As she opened her parachute, she looked up at the plane as it flew off, almost unconsciously realizing that every time she got a ride from the pilot, it was because Ron wasn't around. Drifting downwards, she lightly dropped to her feet, just outside of her house. She'd lost track of the number of times that she had arrived home this way-in fact, odds were more likely she would drop in by parachute than walk home. Rather than leave things for Wade, this time she left her helmet on, quickly taking off her backpack/parachute, twisting around to face the deployed chute. She rapidly gathered the parachute, packing it carefully so it was ready to be used again.

While Wade generally took care of this sort of thing for her, she always tried to practice her skill occasionally to stay sharp-she never knew when she might need to re-deploy a parachute, without Wade able to walk her though things. She trusted her friend implicitly, but she trusted herself more-best to know how to do anything and everything she needed to, herself, in case it came up. As she finished packing it, she realized that was probably part of the reason she was so hyper competitive, and was focusing so much on the cooking issue.

The teen liked to have control of things, whatever issue she was dealing with-not being able to cook was basically a loss of control, and Kim didn't like that at all. She preferred to be able to deal with any and all problems herself-she was a Possible after all. As she made her way upstairs to her room, she shook her head, knowing that she wanted to try and get some more work practicing on her cooking, but she wouldn't have much of a chance. It was getting later in the evening, and she still had some homework that she wanted to get done.

Priorities first, and the red head knew that learning to cook was further down on her list; schoolwork came first, and then her missions-anything else would have to wait until she had the available time. On the somewhat brighter side, without Ron, Kim basically had nothing to do except her homework-and he wasn't there interrupting her, too. The teen was finishing her homework in record time, giving her much more time to devote to other tasks.

Kim took another look at her clock, checking the time, frowning to herself. It was too late to work on any more cooking skills, and too early to go to bed. It was smack in the middle of the time that she usually spent with Ron, watching TV before bed. The teen realized that this was another opportunity for her to go over the different facts she had, and see if she could figure out what was going on in the mission front. Her newest information seemed to tell her that Drakken was involved, just like she had originally though.

She had already talked to Wade about what the Seniors had told her. The tech genius was a little skeptical at first-he had argued, logically, that you couldn't trust anything a villain said. Kim had argued back, that the Seniors, despite their villainous activities, were gentlemen first of all-it wasn't in their makeup to lie. That meant that Drakken was pulling the strings somehow-but this was all so weird. Kim had figured out the villain's plot in record time, with help from Wade-but she was still at a loss when it came to everything else. Where were the rocket silos? The satellites? Why hadn't Wade detected any of this?

The red headed teen had more questions than answers and that was making her weirdar go off. Something was going on, and she would get to the bottom of it, one way or another. She started thinking back over what the Seniors had told her, and an idea came to mind. She quickly put in a call to Wade.

The genius appeared, wide awake. "Kim, something come up?"

Kim shrugged. "Well, sorta, I thought of something. The Seniors said that they lost their connection to their cameras, around the same time that Drakken appeared...without Shego. Do you think..."

"That maybe it was a distraction to steal some money?" He mulled it over. "I guess it's possible, but unlikely. The Seniors are extremely careful with their funds-they account for every cent. Besides, it's protected behind a quadruple layered, multi-complex rotating cypher."

"Unhackable?"

The kid gave her a smile. "Who do you think you're talking to? It took me almost three weeks, but I hacked it a few months ago, to try and keep track of what they've been spending. They haven't updated security yet, so I should still be able to get it." He typed rapidly, his fingers flying over the keyboard, almost too fast to be seen. "No, I'm not getting anything. It's all there, down to the last cent. Like I said, they're very paranoid when it comes to their money-especially after Vincent Wheeler stole everything from them.

Kim nodded, ready to cut the connection, until another thought hit her. "Any glitches or anything? You said it was all accounted for, but is it possible that maybe someone else was able to hack in, and didn't steal anything? Maybe just to prove that he could get in and steal the money later?"

Wade mulled the numbers over some more, finally diving into the code that ran the program itself. He came across a couple of anomalies, alerting Kim as he continued his digging. Finally he turned back to her, wide eyed. "Wow!"

The outburst surprised Kim. "What did you find?"

He shook his head. "Nothing. I mean, it's completely obvious-someone hacked in, and did something-but I have absolutely no clue what they did. I had to go down into the guts of the code, practically down to the binary level, just to find out that things had been changed-but I can't figure out what. All of the Senior's money is there, so it's not like someone stole from them." He frowned in confusion. "It's almost like the funds were transferred somewhere, then sent right back. Like I said, it's almost like someone was just figuring out if they could steal from the Seniors, but didn't actually do it."

"Well, see if you can figure something out, Wade, maybe there is something else going on here." Now Kim frowned. "Have any of the other villains had sudden influxes of money?"

A few seconds later, Wade had the answer. "Yes. It looks like Drakken had a huge deposit in the last couple of days. In fact within an hour of his visit to the Seniors-I bet he stole the money. Well, had Shego do it, anyway. I still don't see why it doesn't show up on the Senior's account, though. I'll get back to you, Kim, after I do some more digging."

Kim nodded down at her Kimmunicator screen. "Sure, Wade, it's no big. I'm going to see Drakken tomorrow anyway, that will give me a chance to get the information from him, if you can't find anything." She smiled and cracked her knuckles. "And if he won't tell me, well, I guess he'll get a flying Kung Fu wedgie."

* * *

_**A/N **Sounds like Kim's finally on the right track, although she still hasn't realized that Zorpox is around. Zorpox still has a few surprises, though, so this isn't over yet._


	14. Checkmate

_**A/N **Thanks to Eddy13 for beta checking, and catching an error in my last chapter; he's always on top of things._

* * *

**Chapter 14-Checkmate**

_(Friday Morning)_

Zorpox woke slowly, blinking as he sat up in bed. A smile slowly spread across his face as he realized-today was the day that he would finally be rid of Shego; and from that point, his plans would go unopposed. He had laid the groundwork, focusing her entirely upon him and his actions, causing her to lose sight of the bigger picture. She was so concerned with figuring out what he was doing, trying to keep Drakken's confidence, that she'd never realized that the only real impediment to his plan was her. And once she was gone...

Everything else would follow.

The villain got out of the bed, stretching slightly, trying to figure out the best way to approach his actions for the day. He had to be careful, make sure that Shego didn't see it coming until it was too late for her to do anything about it. It was time to remove the queen, allowing him to move about the board unopposed. Then, and only then, would he really begin to make headway on his true plan.

X X X X

Shego blinked her blurry eyes, looking at the computer screen in front of her, finally shaking her head. She'd spend the entire night researching Selenium, trying to find any and every use for it that she could, hoping that she'd be able to figure out the villain's big plan. Instead, she was left with zilch. There were just no other practical applications for the semi-conductor; she had absolutely no clue what he planned to do.

The villainess leaned back in her chair, groaning, rubbing at her eyes. This had not only been a waste of her time, but it also left her sleep deprived for the day a head. She had two choices-lots of coffee and try and tough it out, or take a quick nap, and hope Zorpox didn't do anything important while she was sleeping.

Finally deciding on a mix of the two, the female villain decided to catch a couple of hours of sleep, then dose up on coffee.

X X X X X X X X

Kim sat up in bed, blinking slowly. As she slid off the bed and started her morning routine, she thought about the day. She was going to be pretty busy with school, plus she planned to visit Drakken after school; she still couldn't help but feel that there was something she was missing, but wasn't sure what. As she worked out, watching Rufus mimic many of her movements, she couldn't help but smile to herself. Ron would be back next week, and she couldn't wait. The teen couldn't believe how much she missed her best friend; she knew that she did lots of stuff with him, but she didn't realize quite how much, until he was gone. Her eyes widened as she realized...

Tonight was Ron night.

Stopping her actions completely, Kim groaned and flopped back on her bed. She'd completely forgotten. Of course, it's not like this night would be any different than the rest this week, she had just sort of woke up already looking forward to doing something with him tonight. Sighing, she just laid there, then felt a small movement beside her; soon Rufus was sitting on her stomach, looking at her in concern.

She smiled for the mole rat, reaching up to pat his little head. "I'm okay, just started thinking about tonight." He cocked his head at her. "It's Ron night, you know." Suddenly understanding, he nodded his head at her, then hopped back down to the bed, laying flat and watching her. Kim finally sat up then stood, and motioned out towards the hall way.

"Why don't you see what food my mom has in the kitchen for you, while I get ready. I'll be down in a few minutes." He nodded, hesitating slightly, before bounding off.

X X X X

Kim came down the stair a few minutes later, having gotten herself ready for the day, gathering all her schoolwork in her book bag. She brought her backpack down with her, and made her way into the kitchen, spotting her mom plating pancakes. The teen smoothly took her breakfast from her mom, giving her a 'thank you' then sat to eat. They made small talk for a few minutes until Kim's brothers came down, her father just a few steps behind them. The family ate their breakfast together, and since it had been a few days since they had eaten together, they each talked about what they had done the last few days.

Finally finished with the meal, Kim's parents went upstairs to finish getting ready, while her tween brothers started off for school. The red headed teen gave one last quick check to make sure she had everything she need for the day, then set out as well. Once out the front door, she realized that it was a very nice morning, and a perfect day to walk to school. She quickly met up with Monique, and the two talked about different things on their way to school.

After about fifteen minutes, the teens reached Middleton High School, and entered, separating to visit their lockers and collect their different school books, dropping others stuff off that they would need. Kim went into her first class of the morning, ready for working, for once, her thoughts not centered on her absent best friend.

X X X X X X X X

Zorpox walked into the main lab, looking around, finally spotting Drakken working on a satellite. He walked over, calling out to the villain. "Drakken, where's Shego?"

The blue villain yelped in surprise, jerking his head up from inside the metal shell, banging his head. Wincing and mumbling, he finally turned and looked at Zorpox. "Could you please quit sneaking up on me?"

Surprised at his reaction, Zorpox raised an eyebrow. "Lets try this again." He walked out of the room as Drakken watched, the blue villain waiting for him to come back in. He frowned as he waited for a minute, then two, the other villain never reappearing.

"What are we watching for?"

Drakken gave a girlish yelp, spinning in place as he realized that Zorpox had come in the other entrance, and was standing just behind him. "H-How long have you been there?"

The other villain's eyes gleamed. "Long enough." The caped villain looked down at his clawed gloves, rolling the fingers on his left hand, then placing the clawed tips against the metal hull of the satellite nearby. He scraped the tips along the metal, a long grinding, shrieking sound echoing in the lab. As Zorpox raised the glove, the shiny tips poised in front of his face, he smirked, looking at Drakken just past the pointed claws.

"I could have killed you, easily, a hundred times over in just the past few minutes, Drakken." His clawed fingertips shined in the light as he brought them forward, brandishing them in front of the villain. "You're too easily distracted, you miss the obvious, that's why you always fail." He stalked towards the villain, as Drakken backed away fearfully, the near insanity in the other man's eyes making him flinch. "You should never let anyone surprise you, be it lackey, villain, or Kim Possible. They should fear you, be terrified of you, cringe at the mere mention of your name." He placed his right palm on Drakken's chest, driving him against the wall, the caped villain's left hand raising, his pointed claws leveled at the other villain's face. "Just like you fear me."

The mad doctor gurgled in a mix of terror and pain, his body locked as rigid as a mouse being stalked by a predator. Drakken closed his eyes, clenching them tightly, fearfully.

Zorpox chuckled. Drakken finally peeked one eye cautiously, then opened them, realizing that the caped villain had relaxed his pose, and was laughing at him. Drakken felt a certain amount of anger at that, his mind flashing back to his days in college, his 'posse,' how they had mocked him, teased him, tormented him. Letting his own rage take him for a moment, he grabbed Zorpox by the collar, spinning and slamming him against the wall. "You think this is funny? You're laughing at me?"

The caped villain narrowed his eyes. "Laughing? I pity you. You're not a villain, you're just a nerdy little boy who got bullied one too many times. You think you can play with the big dogs, Drakken? Sharpen your teeth, bare your claws, be someone worthy of respect, of fear." Zorpox shoved the villain away, watching him stagger backwards.

Drakken watched the other villain, seething, and waited as Zorpox slowly ran his hands down his chest, smoothing his outfit. He finally smiled. "Very good, Drakken, better than I was expecting."

"E-Expecting?"

"Yes." The caped villain moved forward, walking around Drakken slowly, watching as the blue villain followed his movements. "I knew there was a villain in there somewhere, a leader, someone dangerous. All I had to do was push, and the rest was up to you. You stepped up very nicely. Remember that feeling, don't forget that you're a villain, you're _the_ villain."

Drakken blinked, twice, thinking, realizing that the teen had been trying to get him angry, get him focused, make him actually act like a villain. As soon as the realization occurred, his anger dimmed.

"Remember, you're not a henchman, a lackey, a sidekick. Your job is to lead, not let me, or Shego, or anyone else tell you what to do. You can work with others, but you're the one in charge."

"Now, back to my first question: have you seen Shego this morning?"

Drakken, still a little confused, shook his head. "No, and she's usually up pretty early, too."

The caped villain shook his head. "No matter. I wanted to talk to you about her, anyway." He motioned the mad doctor closer so he could speak confidentially. "I've been watching her, lately, and she's not looking so good." Drakken gave him a blank stare. "She's been irritable-well, more than usual-plus she's been acting sort of strange. Energetic one moment, almost giddy, then her mood seems to swing a different way."

"Aren't women like that?"

Zorpox chuckled in surprise. "Maybe, but Shego's generally pretty stable. Like I said, though, she's been acting a little weird. You need to keep an eye on her, make sure she doesn't crack and go crazy."

Drakken was concerned. "You think she could be getting stressed out?"

The caped villain shrugged back. "Who knows? She obviously doesn't like me, so I'm probably not making things any better. Just keep an eye on her." He looked around, his gaze going up to one of the cameras. "Work on that satellite there for a while." He motioned over at one of the satellites to the side, finally lowering his face from the camera. "And be ready for any crazy outbursts."

The other villain nodded back, walking over to the satellite Zorpox had indicated, getting ready to work on it.

X X X X

As her alarm blared, Shego sat up groggily, her mouth dry as cotton, her eyes gritty as she blinked them. Three hours of sleep, and she had to somehow use that to figure out what Zorpox was planning, figure out how to prevent that caped villain from taking over from Drakken. She stood up slowly, staggering a little, before getting her feet under her. She walked over to her door, shoulders hunched, then pressed the panel on the side, hearing the door slide open.

"Morning, Shego."

The villainess shrieked, her clawed hands, glowing, slashing forward in a vicious arc. She only just barely managed to curb her reaction, the pointed tips of her gloves stopping inches from Zorpox's face. "A little tense, are we, my dear?"

Grinding her teeth, she glared at him. "I'm not tired. I mean, I'm not tense!"

"Tweaked then?"

Shego blinked, shaking her head, trying to get her muddled thoughts in order. The lack of sleep was really getting to her, dulling her reactions to Zorpox's ploys. "No." She snarled, pushing past him, stalking her way down the hall.

The caped villain called to her retreating back, "I left a batch of coffee for you."

Shego decided to forgo the coffee as she heard Zorpox start chuckling, quietly at first, before his laugh got louder and louder, ringing through the halls.

X X X X X X X X

Kim sat in her class, listening patiently as Barking lectured about different elements and reactions during her Chemistry class. Monique, in class today unlike the previous week, met her eyes across their lab station, giving a quiet, exasperated sigh. "As I'm sure many of your remember from last Thursday's 'incident' even simple elements and compounds can react violently under certain circumstances." Kim itched her arms in remembrance.

"The first row of elements in the periodic table can be unstable-hydrogen, for example, explodes fairly easily. Sometimes, though, you get reactions that you would never expect. I'm sure many of you in here would use water to extinguish a fire. Hopefully, though, you all remember that we have special chemical based fire extinguishers here." He smiled at the front, lifting a small bit of sodium, then held it poised over a small pan of water. "This is why." Barkin dropped the element, and it sparked with a yellow flame, to the teacher's amusement. After a few seconds, his gruff demeanor returned. "All right, people, you've got work to do."

Monqiue motioned across the table to Kim, and the teen leaned over, then started working on their experiment. The two students worked in tandem for almost the entire period, focused on getting their work done, learning as much as they could in case their substitute should decide to spring a pop quiz on them. Finally as they neared the end of the hour, Kim sat back, looking at what they had done.

"Well, we've tested the chemicals, gotten their reactions down, including the color that they burn, and how reactive they are. Anything else you can think of to do?" Her friend shook her head. The red headed teen raised her hand, and Barkin made his way over. She passed their papers to him. "Here you go, Mr Barkin."

Almost grumbling to himself, he took them, looking them over. "Everything looks to be here, Possible, Stop-" He blinked for a second. "Monique." He hesitated, then motioned with his hand. "You can put your lab equipment up."

Sharing a glance, the two teens nodded, grabbing their stuff off the table, then took them back into the supply room. Once inside, and out of Barkin's earshot, Kim looked at her friend. "Did he just...?"

Her dark haired friend nodded back. "Yeah, I heard it too. He forgot Ron was gone."

Kim looked at her. "Yeah, I'd almost forgotten too, while we were working. But, something seemed a little odd."

The other teen frowned slightly. "Yeah, I caught it too. He almost seemed...sad?"

"Barkin?" Kim chuckled. "He was probably just disappointed that he didn't get to chew Ron out for doing something." She finished putting the last of their lab stuff up, then stopped, looking at the shelves. "Look at this, the label is getting kinda faded. And this one is ripped almost in half." She pulled a few of the them off the shelves, studying them, then sighed.

"Poor Ron, he was lucky he didn't get something even worse when he was grabbing stuff." She set it all back, then turned to her friend. "We need to talk with Barkin about getting this stuff relabeled, so we don't have a repeat incident."

She walked out to talk with the teacher, her friend right behind her with a few of the containers.

X X X X

Shego practically vibrated in her chair, looking at the six empty cans sitting on the table in front of her, her head darting around, side to side, as she looked around, carefully. The dark haired woman jerked her head around again as she heard a noise, then tried to relax, realizing it was nothing.

The villainess was sitting in the middle of the cafeteria, the six empty energy drinks attesting to how buzzed she now was. She stood up, hopping from foot to foot, before reining in her energy. She mumble to herself. "Okay, Shego, keep it together. That caffeine should keep me going, now I need to see what I can find out about Zorpox."

She took a couple slow breaths, soon calming down. Finally getting past the energy rush, she quickly left the cafeteria, and made her way back to her room. Once inside, she went over to the computer terminal in her room, booting it up. She had managed to get a connection set up to the different cameras in the lair, and had set them to record Zorpox's movements. She quickly called up the footage of the last few hours, from the time that she had last seen him.

The villainess didn't trust the camera in his room, so she instead focused on the other cameras, watching his door until he eventually left in the morning, just a few hours ago. She followed him with the camera, watching as he made his way to Drakken's lab, then in. She was unable to get any sound out of the footage, but she was able to watch what was going on. The dark haired woman frowned to herself as she watched Drakken back away from the other villain, hesitantly, fearfully. She actually smirked to herself when she saw the blue villain slam Zorpox against the wall. It seemed the two of them had been having some sort of argument.

As the rest of the footage played, she wondered what the fight was about, but dismissed her curiosity. She could always ask Drakken, and see what had been going on. Regardless, by the end they seemed to be on much more friendly terms, so she didn't think the fight was that important. She watched as the caped villain looked at the camera, making some comment about working on one of the satellites, then turned and left.

She followed his next actions, realizing that he seemed to just be walking around, killing time. Finally, the villain made his way into the smaller, secondary lab. As the villainess tried to call up the video of inside, she realized that it was garbled, the cameras disabled. Growling low to herself, she knew that she was now going to have to go and check on him, and see what he was doing. She stalked out of her room, down the halls, her hands glowing faintly.

X X X X

It was time. Zorpox grinned widely to himself, looking over his invention, knowing that all the pieces were in place. He had spent the last few hours going over this plan, working through the details as he prowled around the lair, ensuring all the details as best he could. He had finally found himself back in his lab, ready to spring his trap on Shego. Now it all rested on how the villainess reacted...and he was pretty sure that she was going to give a memorable performance.

He started to mumbling to himself, quietly, waiting. He had used the different cameras throughout Drakken's lair to watch Shego, and she had reacted even better than he could have hoped. The villainess had spent the entire night awake, trying to figure out what he had purchased the Selenium for; not that she was likely to realize the caped villain's plan.

Zorpox smiled to himself widely, waiting, waiting until he was sure that everything was in place. Perfectly aligned, his plan must be implemented down to the smallest key feature, or else everything could come crashing down on his head. Lightly playing his hand over the key switch, he nodded to himself, knowing that nearly everything was ready for the big reveal. He played his hand over the invention sitting on his table; it was simply a long metal rod, a battery and a few other parts hooked together, a single button serving as the 'on' switch. It needed no 'off' switch. He hit the button, watching as everything was set into motion.

At the press of the button, a loud, sharp crack was heard, and he watched as a giant spark zapped out, just past his shoulder

The caped villain commented to himself, "Hmm, need to increase the power..."

A yelp from behind caused him to turn his head around, spotting Shego directly behind him. The villainess was leaned to one side, the wall behind her blackened and scorched. She turned her head to look at the wall, then faced Zorpox again, her eyes narrowed. She let her clawed hands glow as she practically rushed at him, grabbed his collar, then practically threw him across the room. The caped villain managed to get his feet under him, staggering backwards. Shego came at him again, slamming him up against the wall.

"Shego, do you have a problem?" Despite being pinned up against the wall, Zorpox acted like he was in complete control. Maybe he was.

"You threatened to kill me. Repeatedly. And now you've got some invention that shoots a spark just as I come in the room, nearly hitting me. You could have killed me-but that was your plan, wasn't it? Well I've had enough of you and your threats..." He actually chuckled at her words. She slapped him across the face. "This is serious!" Her own face was full of rage.

Still laughing, he could do nothing but shake his head. "Sorry, it's just so funny. You think that I'm trying to kill you..." He burst into another laughing fit. "...ahem, sorry." He regained his composure. "My dear, why would I kill you? You may be the queen, but I play a bigger game-besides, the queen maybe the most powerful piece, but she is far from the most important. A queen is nothing more than a glorified pawn. Important, powerful, maybe, but the real piece of consequence-the king." He mused for a second. "You know, I think I lied to you, earlier-right now, there's only one other king on the board, and as soon as I'm rid of him, I won't have to follow orders anymore."

Her eyes settle on the attitudinator headband on his head, and she connected the dots, dropping Zorpox in surprise. She stepped back, thinking the last events through-she thought that he had been trying to make her lose her temper and attack the villain in anger-instead, his plan had been to divert her attention. She'd been so focus on keeping herself in line, she hadn't even considered what he was doing-Ron, and Zorpox by extension, was a master at being the distraction.

Shego thought back to the video she had seen, with Zorpox having her boss work on a specific satellite-that was probably rigged. Her eyes widened in panic-that meant he was going to try and kill Drakken. She spun in place and began running toward the main lab, but not before Zorpox's parting shot filled her with fear. "I hope you won't be _shocked_ by your boss's condition..." His mocking laughter followed her long after she'd left him behind.

X X X X

Shego ran though the lair at full speed, her heart in her throat. She told herself that she was only concerned with her reputation, that all she cared about was keeping her boss safe, but a small part of her knew it was more than that. As much as she hated to admit it, Drakken was right-they were like an evil family. She may not get along with him all the time, but she never really wanted him dead. She turned a corner, keeping up the pace, hoping she wouldn't be too late.

The villainess finally burst through the lab doors, to see Drakken just beginning to lean over the satellite she had seen. His hands just started to reach in, when she shoved him out of the way with nary a warning. Her hands began glowing, and she fired into the machine repeatedly, turning it into a glowing cinder. Breathing rapidly, she spoke without turning. "It was a setup-he, Zorpox, that little weasel wanted to kill you Dr D. Oh, but no, I'm better than he is, faster-I'll never let him have his way." She turned, to see Drakken looking at her with a look of shock. She admitted she was a little shocked by her behavior, as well. Then _he_ showed up.

Zorpox walked up behind Drakken, and he had the nerve to be smirking. Shego growled, and her hands glowed of their own accord. She almost had a nervous twitch, she was bouncing from one foot to the other, full of energy, almost hyperactive. She did it, she stopped him, she was so much better. No, no, no, no, she had him now she...she paused, and finally seemed to come to grips with what had just happened.

She run into Drakken's lab, knocked the doctor away, fried one of his satellites, and began babbling something about stopping Zorpox. Then she had acted like a kid in a candy store. Her eyes widened in shock, even more so when she saw the villain mouth something to her.

_Checkmate._

Oh, no...no, no, no. He'd done it. She had made a fool of herself, destroyed any credibility she may have still had with Drakken. He'd been looking at her funny the last couple of days-throw in her latest crazy freakout, and she'd be lucky if she didn't get fired. Freaking your boss out is not a good way to get points with him. She hung her head down, defeated.

Drakken moved toward her, uncertain. What was going on? "Shego? Are...are you alright?" He reached a hand out toward her, then lightly touched her arm. He couldn't have gotten a more violent reaction if he'd jabbed her with a cattle prod.

"Don't touch me!" She shrieked at him, slapping his hands away. "I'm fine. Fine except for your stupid ideas, and that...that...sidekick!" She couldn't think of any other insult, which shamed her even more. She was always in more control than this, she never just let herself fly off the handle, but now she couldn't help herself. Zorpox had been pushing her buttons for the last few days, and now she'd just snapped.

"I'm sick of this, all this, and sick of you, Drakken! It wouldn't matter if you had hundreds of villains like Zorpox ready to do your bidding. You're nothing but a half-wit, no success, blundering idiot! I've been working with you for over two years, and you can't ask anything but 'Are you alright?' Of course I'm not alright-I've wasted the last two years with a buffoon who couldn't find his way out of a paper bag!"

"I could stand that, I really could, if you were an evil villain. But let's face it, Dr Drakken, you even fail there. Sure, you do some petty thieving, and occasion weapons deals, but the most evil thing that I've ever seen you do was send one of the henchmen to bed without their supper-like he was some disobedient five year old. And lets not forget Drew Lipsky-what kinda villain name is that!"

Finally, her fury spent, she looked at Drakken with sad eyes. "I, I'm sorry, I..." She turned and ran off, she couldn't stand to stay and face him.

X X X X X X X X

The final period bell finally rang, and Kim gave a sigh of relieve, slipping out of her last class of the day. She pulled out a small notepad that she kept in her backpack, looking over her schedule, and smirked to herself. She actually didn't have any homework, or anything due this weekend, so she had an opportunity to work on some other things-like her cooking.

She thought back a couple of days, to the last time she had worked with Monique, and started thinking about the other cooking skills the wanted to work on. As Kim placed her stuff in her locked, she pulled out her Kimmunicator, reaching to turn it on, then noticed that her friend was standing just down the hall. Pocketing her device, the teen took a few hurried steps towards her friend, fast enough to catch up, but not too quickly to get her in trouble with Barkin. "Hey, Monique!"

Her friend turned, cringing slightly, then took a breath and waited for Kim. "All right, girl, what do you need?"

Kim smiled. "Guess what? I've got a free weekend!"

"Swell." Monique narrowed her eyes, then shook her head. "Okay, Kim, I guess we can do some more work on your...project...tomorrow, but I'm going to have to beg off on Sunday." Seeing Kim's glare, she shook her head. "No, not just because I'm terrified of you, I have to go in to Club Banana for some work." She leaned in to whisper. "We're getting some new stuff in, should be ready to show it on Wednesday. I might be able to give you a little look before hand."

The red head's eyes lit up, and she grinned, grabbing Monique's arm. "Really? The latest style?"

"Yeah, but listen, girl, burn my house down, and I won't talk to you for a month-and you can forget about the clothes."

Kim gave her puppydog pout. "Aww, I'll be vewwy careful." The teen smirked, the motioned with her hand. "Listen, I've got to go, still have cheer leading practice. I'll see you tomorrow, then?" Her friend nodded, and Kim said her goodbye, quickly turning and heading towards the gym, and her practice.

X X X X X X X X

It was nearly twenty minutes after her freakout that Shego heard a knocking at her door. She had spent those last few minutes composing herself...okay, that wasn't entirely accurate. She'd spent the last twenty minutes destroying everything in her room that was replaceable-and a few things that weren't. She'd been so caught up in her anger, she was only just starting to realize that the knocking had been going on for almost fifteen minutes. She opened the door to see Drakken standing there.

She opened her mouth, but he stopped her. "Let me speak first." She nodded, mutely, and watched as he gathered what little courage he had and sat next to her on the bed. "I know that you've always thought that I was a little too...nice...to be a villain, but that's part of the reason that I hired you in the first place Shego. I just plan things, you're here to help me put it together and make it happen."

"I think, though, that part of my job is to reign in your destructive qualities, and that's something I haven't been doing for a long time. It doesn't help that you fight Kim Possible so often and always lo-come out with a draw. I think that you're sort of stuck in a rut, and that you're just always used to fighting everyone, especially Kim-and since she's not around, you've focused on Zorpox."

Shego disagreed, she knew, just knew that Zorpox was much more dangerous than any of them realized, and that she was the only one in a position to stop him-at least, she had been in a position; now she was nearly as untrustworthy as any henchman. She grimaced, thinking about her boss's words. "What exactly are you suggesting?"

He waved his hands around. "I think you need to get out of the lair, get away from all the villainy and the thievery and all the things that you do here. I think you need to take a break, Shego, and go on a vacation."

"A vacation?" Shego didn't seem as thrilled as he thought she would be.

"Well, you _are_ overdue for one..."

Shego eyed him. "Several, actually."

Drakken rubbed his hands together. "Um...yes, well you've never complained before."

"If I thought it would help, I would have."

Inspiration struck. "Shego...well, I just think that the anger you've been showing at Zorpox should have been directed at me. You haven't been on a vacation, so you're taking out all that anger on him, instead of me. You're burnt out-a week away would be good for you. Heck, take ten days, I think I can manage."

Shego was surprised. She'd been expecting maybe three days-that's usually all the time he gave her. A full week-a week and a half-she could finally get the entire spa treatment that Midas wanted to give her, but she never had time for. She'd be able to relax for hours, nothing to do, and not worry that she was wasting a full day doing nothing.

She was still hesitant to leave Drakken alone with Zorpox-okay, she down right dreaded the prospect, but she knew that she wouldn't be able to do any good here. Besides, there was an easy way to prevent the villain from pulling a double cross. "Okay, I'll go...but if you have any problems with Zorpox, let me know-don't hesitate to call. I don't trust him, and if things go bad, I'd rather loose vacation and deal with him, than come out of my vacation with him ruling the world alone."

Drakken nodded, but knew that wouldn't be a problem. What could Zorpox do to him? Nothing, as long as that attitudinator band stayed on his head. But always better safe than sorry. "I'll keep that in mind. Now, I'll expect you back here at the beginning of the week, two weeks from now."

"Yes, Dr D." She watched the other villain stand up; he gave her a small, hesitant smile, and she couldn't help but smile back. He may have been completely clueless about almost everything, but occasionally, he could do something really nice and thoughtful. The blue scientist backed up, first one step, then two, towards the door, not paying attention. He turned, intending to head out the door, taking a step, but didn't realize that he had backed up a bit too far.

His first step thumped him against Shego's dresser, his momentum tipping him forward until he laid across the dresser. He moved his arms as he tried to get his balance, instead knocking half the items off the top. He turned, giving her a sheepish grin, and she glared back at him. She considered helping him pick stuff up, but smiled to herself as she realized the blue villain was still afraid of making her mad. He quickly gathered everything up, tossing it on the dresser, giving her one last look, then dashing out the door.

As Shego watched him leave, she chuckled to herself, then started thinking about her vacation. The things she could do-with all that time. She stood, then went over to her closet, pulled it open, and started gathering her clothes. She concentrated on getting her swim wear and other casual clothes, then grabbed a small bag that she kept handy, full of other amenities that she would need. She packed everything into a couple of suitcases, then made her way out of the room locking it behind her.

In the confusion after Drakken's exit, she never noticed that the hairbrush was missing off her dresser.

X X X X

In a small laboratory, hidden away from the central areas of the lair, a blue figure chuckled to himself. He studied the small hairbrush in his hands, running his gloved fingertips over the bristles, a smile covering his face. He held the hairbrush over a table, shaking it lightly, watching as a few small, black hairs fell off the brush, settling down in front of him. He picked up a single strand of the hair, lifting it to his eyes, then smiled evilly.

X X X X

Nearly an hour after Shego had left on her vacation, Zorpox made his way back into his main lab, looking over the different supplies and inventions that he had. He sat down, looking over the devices sitting around him trying to decide what he needed to work on next. With Shego out of the picture, and Drakken otherwise occupied, he knew that this was his best opportunity to ensure all the technical aspects of his plan were ready to go.

He check over the different inventions he had created for his plan, inspecting each one carefully. His hands passed over the two devices he was creating using the Selenium, and he smiled, knowing that these unique items were key to his plan-and they were being designed to ensure that not even Wade would be able to combat them.

Finally through with his inspection, he went about working on another device that he would need for his overarching plot. As the villain settled in to work, he worked quietly and consistently for the next few hours, never considering that others might have their own plans in the works.

X X X X X X X X

As Kim made her way home after cheer practice, she frowned to herself. Villains were supposed to be easy to predict, relatively dumb when it came to making plans, straightforward. She was still having a hard time getting her mind wrapped around what had been happening the last couple of days. First one villain attacks another, then another, and somehow at the heart of this, Drakken was planning something as well.

The teen reached her home, going inside, passing her brothers working a rocket in the kitchen. She made her way upstairs, quickly getting changed then pulling out her Kimmunicator as she went back down. "Wade?" The genius appeared.

Kim looked at her tech friend. "Something about this is still bugging me, even with Drakken's connection to the Seniors. Why would he steal money like that from them? He usually just sends Shego in to steal whatever supplies he needs." The teen turned, finally focusing on her brothers, the two tweebs hefting a long rocket between them. She frowned.

"Are you two still launching rockets?"

The twins looked at each other, then at Kim. "We've been working on this rocket for almost three weeks..."

"...And we still haven't got the rocket set up right..."

"...We have to make sure that everything is correct with the rocket..."

"...and the fuel..."

"...and the weather..."

"...or else this rocket could crash or just go completely off course."

Tim just shook his head. "Come on, Kim, it's not like you can just launch a rocket in a day, you have to plan everything out."

As her brother spoke, Kim's eyes lost focus for a second, as a number of memories sprang forth. She felt her eyes widen, and then she turned back down, looking at Wade on screen. "Wade! Wade, that's it that's what's been bugging me." She looked over at her twins brothers, and the two boys looked back, startled by her outburst. "The rockets. The tweebs watched a show the other day, about rocket systems."

The genius nodded with a smile. "Yeah, I saw it too-I loved the shots of those older rockets-"

"No, Wade, you're missing the point." She dipped her head for a second, gathering her thoughts. "The show mentioned that it could take years for someone like NASA to create a single satellite and launch it. I know that my dad had been working on the Hephestus project for almost three years, and it's related to space probes."

She paused, thinking. "I also talked with Barkin at school, about getting some chemical containers relabeled, and he said that they've had those containers for years, sitting-they had to order in bulk, because it takes them months to get the supplies. Okay, talking Dementor, or any of the villains, how long would it take to make enough satellites to make an orbital laser system?"

Wade's eyes widened as it finally clicked. "Of course! Factoring in getting the parts, building the satelllites, rocket boosters, computer systems, the chemicals, fuels, launch control..." He trailed off, tallying a number of different things together. "Whoa! We're looking at around at least seven or eight months, if everything just fell into place. Could be a year or more if they had to wait on parts or things failed on them. Kim," he looked up at her. "There's no way that Dementor or any of the other could have all of this created and we don't know about it-looking at his actions of the last couple of years don't show any signs of activity like this."

He leaned forward, checking some other things. "Same for the other villains. Although..." He did some more typing. "Drakken! He's gotten some electronics and things-I didn't think that they were important, because they can be used for almost anything-but he also got some chemicals that you can use for rocket launches. And Dementor!"

A small list appeared on her screen. "Dementor, when he was attacked-he lost a lot of supplies, some of which can be used for making rockets. You're right, it's not Dementor or the Seniors we're after, it's Drakken! Now that stolen money makes more sense-he needed a huge amount of funds to be able to buy all of his supplies."

Kim was on her feet in an instant. "Wade, get me a ride set up-I think it's time we talked to Drakken and figure out what's going on."

X X X X

Drakken came back into his lab, after spending over an hour working on part of his plan. After working on his other project, the blue doctor had decided to get some more work done on the satellites; a few minutes after he started, he realized there was a small problem with the satellite he was working on-there had been some electrical fault when he'd been testing some resistors, and now he was having to check the wiring over section by section. It was tedious work, but essential-if a single satellite would fail, in could cause a large gap of earth that would be untargetable.

He was getting ready to totally gut the satellite in front of him, when he heard a light ringing buzzer sound from behind him. He turned, and realized that it was a special sensor that he had made to alert him if there was an sort of airborne object coming within range of his castle. He had upgraded it to recognize very small objects; so while there had been a number of false positives caused by birds, he hoped that it would eventually recognize if Kim was coming near. He checked his monitors, and realized that it had worked-she was coming.

With a small, evil smirk, he pushed a button on his wall, causing the satellites to retract into the floor and be hidden from view. Yes, now it was time to put on the greatest act of his villainous career. He quickly went over the same desk he had been working at the last time she arrived, and sat in place, his super-weapon-in-a-bottle sitting right in the middle. He picked it up and began fiddling with it, smirking to himself. It wasn't just a cover for him to use; he actually did like to build miniature things like this.

The device in the glass bottle was actually a recreation of his Doomsday Decimator...a nearly perfect replication, even down to the fact that it actually fired a burst of polarized, concentrated light. It wasn't nearly as powerful as the real one, of course, but he was pretty sure he could use it to set something on fire, or maybe burn a hole in the wall. He was waiting until it was completely build inside the bottle before he tried it out. He was almost done, then hooked up the last, nearly microscopic power conduit. There, it was finished!

And not a moment too soon. A slight thunking and rattling from above, and a red headed teen dropped from the grate above him, nearly landing in his lap. He yelped like a scared schoolgirl, jumping to his feet, nearly knocking the super weapon and bottle off the table. He managed to snatch it up at the last possible second. Kim glared at him, carefully preparing herself to attack.

Drakken just snorted. "You again? Don't you have anything better to do?"

Shaking off a sense of Deja vu, Kim narrowed her eyes. "You lied to me, Drakken, I think that gives me enough reason to be here." She stalked toward him, and he backed up fearfully, wondering how a teenage girl could seem to tower over him so much. "I had a talk with the Seniors-they are planning something, but it'll be a week or so until they're ready to go. I found it pretty interesting, though, when they told me how you paid them a visit just a couple of days ago. You forgot to mention that."

The villain backed up until his back hit the wall, and he realized he was cut off. She smirked. "Now...hold on, Kimberly," he put his hands up defensively. "I-I don't want any trouble, I told you, I'm on vacation, I'm not doing anything." He winced fearfully and begged her. "No Kung Fu Wedgies!"

She cracked her knuckles, grinning gleefully. "Start talking, or you're gonna be singing soprano."

"No..." He shook his head. "She...she'll do even worse, I can't say anything." He closed his eyes and bit his lip. "Just make it quick."

Kim, however, had paused at this new information. "She? Shego? This is her plan...not yours?"

"I know!" he moaned. "I'm such a failure, she said she wouldn't work for me anymore unless I gave her a chance to try to take over the world on her own. It's blackmail I tell you! She's just a side kick, a lackey!" He paused, eyes wide, looking at Kim fearfully. "Don't tell Shego I called her that."

The teen just smirked. "Keep talking, or I will."

"Alright, alright. She, she made me do all the work, even made me take the credit, so that you would think that it was me instead of her, she said that you would be less likely to view me as a threat." The villain huffed, crossing his arms.

Kim rolled her eyes as her arch-foe continued. "She made me do everything, so that I would take the fall, and she could continue with her plan. Shego says she's smarter than you, and she's out to prove it. She's been doing all of these different things, with Dementor, Killigan and the rest, in order to keep you from knowing what was going on."

The teen waited until she was sure that Drakken was finished. Finally, she frowned at him. "So where is she now?"

He shook his head, and waved his arms. "I don't know, she wouldn't tell me. Said now it was her chance to shine, without me holding her back. I don't know where she went."

Kim moved forward, looking at Drakken carefully, her body seeming to tower over him as she looked for any sign that he was lying. The villain did his best to hold his pose, but cringed under her direct stare. The red head nodded. "Fine, then, I guess I'll have to find her myself. Don't worry Drakken, I'll have your 'lackey' back before you know it when I foil her plan." Her eyes set with determination as she turned and left.

X X X X

As Kim left the villain's lair, she quickly whipped out her Kimmunicator, looking at her tech friend. "Did you get all of that, Wade?"

He nodded at her. "Yeah, I've already begun a search to see if we can find anything on Shego-might take a couple of days, though. If Drakken isn't lying about how sneaky this plan is, it could be days before we get a hit, even then."

Kim winced. "That's not good, Wade, she might be ready to attack by then."

The kid took a drink of his slurpster. "Actually, I doubt it-remember how long it will take to get this all done? Even as sneaky as everything is, something should have triggered my computers-so far, nothing. I don't think she has all of the pieces yet, so we should have a little time."

"Good." She smiled slightly. "Maybe Ron will be back by then. Regardless, this is starting to make his head spin."

X X X X X X X X

Zorpox felt like his head was spinning. He blinked a couple of times and closed his eyes, then reached down to turn his invention off. The flashing lights had not been part of the design; it was almost mesmerizing in its intensity. He decided to scrap it-he was not making any progress this way; he was having no luck getting things working correctly.

He pulled the device apart, piece by piece, checking things over to see if he could find what exactly was going wrong. As he pulled the last major part off, he realized that the design itself, while somewhat inefficient, should have worked. Finally he tracked the problem down to the small diamond he was using a focusing crystal. A quick check of the jewel revealed that it had a small, almost infinitesimal flaw-but that little defect had caused his entire invention to fail.

The villain let a brief, rare burst of anger forth, sweeping his hand across the table, flinging the machine into the wall where it shattered. It wouldn't work-not in the time that he had left. With just a few short days until his plan reached certain key stages, he couldn't devote the time he needed to this project to learn all of its specifications. Even going over some of Drakken's old super weapons had not yielded the results he wanted.

Zorpox was, first and foremost, a genius at reverse engineering technology. That was how he had managed to turn Drakken's Sonic Annihilator into a doomsday weapon, or mimic Wade's holo tech. At the same time, he could even create his own devious superweapons; however his best skills seemed to lean towards weapons that dealt with weather or other natural states. What he was working on now was outside his skill set-he could finish it, given enough time, but now time was the one thing he was short of.

He sat back and mused for a second, thinking about Electronique. He had, in a manner of speaking, gone to her for advice, using her unique talents to create the special attitudinator helmet. A grin slowly spread across his face as he realized-he could use other's talents to help him with this project, as well. In fact, that should put him ahead of schedule. Deciding to put this project off until a much later time, the villain quickly grabbed the electronics he was using, scooping them off into a small container, that he then dropped into something he had swiped from Drakken's lab.

The incinerator destroyed all traces of Zorpox's work, leaving him free to devote himself to his next task.

X X X X

Drakken laughed evilly to himself. Things were actually going to plan! Kim was completely clueless about what was going on, he'd managed to distract her with talk about Shego, and now he would be left in peace while he worked on his plan. With Shego out on vacation, it would take Kim a while to figure out where she was, and after what Drakken had told her, the red head wouldn't believe anything Shego said-so the villainess would be unable to blab the plan to her if caught.

Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, his plan with Zorpox was working perfectly.

X X X X

Zorpox mumbled to himself, looking over the supplies he had spread on his desk. He planned to use the equipment to get some of the last pieces of his plan in place; at the same time, he also planned to make a short detour, and check on Shego. He knew that she would be arriving at her vacation spot sometime the next morning. She had chosen to actually take a commercial flight, instead of a hovercar, so while it would be more comfortable for the villainess, it would also take longer. The caped villain planned to use a hovercraft to follow her the next day, and still arrive at nearly the same time.

The caped villain planned to watch Shego for a while, and ensure that she wasn't going to try and work against him, or do something else that could disrupt his plan. After confirming that, Zorpox planned to get some other work done in the vacation spot. A certain company was holding a business convention and meeting nearby, and he wanted to be sure that he could 'attend.'

X X X X X X X X

When Kim got home after her visit to Drakken's lair, it was getting pretty late. Since she knew that she would basically have the entire weekend free, she decided to just turn in for the evening, figuring she could work on anything she needed to over the next couple of days. She was also feeling a little better about the villain sitch, since she now knew that Shego was the one involved with everything; and with Wade working on finding her, the teen knew it wouldn't be long before she was able to thwart Shego's plan.

As she laid back in her bed, her eyes slowly closing, she couldn't shake the feeling that dark things were coming in the days ahead.

* * *

_**A/N **Many of the pieces are starting to fall into place, although this story is far from over. With her last outburst, Shego is temporarily out of the picture; at least, as a direct threat to Zorpox._


	15. Best Laid Plans

**_A/N _**_First, woohoo, 100k+ words! A bit less with author's notes, but whatever-I lost track of the word count when writing, so I'm interested to see how long this story actually is_**_._**

_Anyway, as always, thanks to Eddy13 for beta checking, he always keeps on top of things._

* * *

**Chapter 15: Best Laid Plans**

_(Saturday-Week 2)_

A blaring alarm woke Kim from her sound slumber Saturday morning. She moaned and rolled over, slapping her hand at her clock, grimacing as she realized that she had forgotten to turn the alarm off the night before. Finally she connected with the snooze button, and the clock quieted its loud bleating warning.

As she sat up in bed, the teen was again thankful that her room wasn't next door to her parents' or brothers' room; the alarm would have woken them up, too. The red head slid out of the bed, looking over at her dresser, noting that Rufus had managed to sleep through the alarm. She smiled to herself, thinking about Rufus and Ron-the two of them had managed to sleep through a lot of other things, too, so she wasn't really surprised.

Kim dropped to the ground, starting her morning with a few pushups and situps, then stretched, getting her body ready for the day. She then worked on some of her other skills, before going over to her closet. Since the teen had a few hours before she was supposed to visit Monique and work on her cooking skills, the red head wanted to do some organization on her mission equipment. The teen had a lot of supplies that Wade had made for her activities, and it had actually been a while since she sifted through her backpack, determining what was useful, and what was not.

First to go were a couple of empty containers of Wade's elastic constricting agent, and two grapple claws that were rather rough looking, pitted and chipped after repeated use. She also pulled out a pair of her mission gloves, looking them over, spotting a number of rips, tears, and holes. They went into the trash as well, and then the teen reorganized what was left.

This particular backpack held her grapple hair dryer, knock out lip gloss, laser lipstick, and a few other odds and ends that she hadn't used in quite a while. She also had some of Wade's newest inventions, and she looked them over, getting more familiar with their workings.

Finally finished, Kim zipped the bag up, then tossed it back into her closet. She made her way across her room, glancing to her door, before going down on one knee to unlatch the hatch at the base of her bed. The stairs up to her room were a more direct way to get inside, but the door across from her bed was sometimes useful. The teen preferred the stairs, though, because it allowed her more privacy, and also kept her from disturbing anyone else with her late night comings and goings, due to her missions.

Kim made her way into the kitchen to get something to eat, grumbling quietly to herself as she realized she'd better stick with cereal.

She didn't want to try and risk cooking eggs.

X X X X X X X X

Zorpox woke up with a smile on his face. Finally, the first day that he didn't have Shego breathing down his neck, doing her best to figure out what he was doing. He had a relatively free day to do whatever he wanted, and he knew that he was going to start getting things ready for his big reveal. Two, three more days, and he would be ready; ready to turn the tables on Drakken, and deal with both Shego and Kim, all in one swoop. And the best part was that none of them knew what was coming.

Chuckling, the villain stood, getting himself ready, dressed out with some different supplies that he had and needed. First on his agenda was actually to check on Shego, and ensure that she really was going on the vacation-he didn't need her pulling a run around, coming back and interrupting his scheme. Besides that, he had plans to set a few more key devices in place, and Shego happened to be vacationing in the same area he was going to use them.

As the villain finished getting ready for the day, he quickly looked around the room once more, ensuring he had everything he needed. Finally he moved to the door, heading out. The villain walked through the halls carefully, making his way to the main laboratory, passing a handful of different henchmen. Each man spoke to him respectfully, and Zorpox gave them each a nod and a not-quite-sinister smile. As the caped villain reached his location, a small part of his mind wondered if it might not be a good idea to have his own henchmen at some point.

Shaking the thoughts off, Zorpox entered the lab, noticing Drakken working as he had been the last few days. The caped villain slowly approached the blue scientist, making plenty of noise this time, finally sliding a clawed fingertip over the metal hull of a satellite, catching Drakken's attention. "Zorpox?"

The caped villain smiled, "Yes, it's me. Good ear." Inwardly the villain rolled his eyes-shuffling his feet, stomping on the floor, Drakken had only heard when Zorpox was practically on top of him. He gave a small sigh as he continued. "I'm going to be out of the lair for a while today, I have some things to take care of."

Instantly, the villain pulled his head out of the satellite he was working on, eying Zorpox suspiciously. "Working on? What exactly are you going to be doing?" His eyes raised up, looking at the headband on the other villain's head.

Zorpox waved his fears off. "Relax, Drakken, I'm not planning on overthrowing your 'Benevolent' rule..." _Not yet anyway_. "...I have to take care of a few things for the plan."

"Like what?"

The caped villain narrowed his eyes dangerously. "Inquisitive today, aren't you, Dr D?" He raised a clawed hand, fingertips arcing in the air as he gave a small, feline-like slash. "Don't you know: curiosity killed the cat." He smiled, humoring the villain. "If you must know, I intend to do some more research on some of the electrical components of these satellites. I think I've come across something that will work better than what we are using-but I need to check the place over, and see what the security looks like."

"Shego could..." Drakken blinked, finally seeming to realize that the villainess was going to be gone for the forseable future. "...Okay, I guess since we don't have her to infiltrate the place, you'll have to do it yourself."

Zorpox spoke dangerously. "Are you saying she's better than me?"

The blue villain's eyes widened, and he took a step back. "N-no, I just meant..."

The caped villain held his glare for a few more seconds, then laughed. "I'm just playing you, Dr D. Yes, she is better at stealing things, and I'm not ashamed to admit it. But, with careful planning, I should be able to do this myself, without her skills. Regardless..." He looked around, then back the other villain. "...I'm going to be out a little while, so don't do anything stupid while I'm gone."

Drakken crossed his arms. "I never do anything stupid." There was a ding from across the lab, and the villain's eyes widened as he turned, speaking gleefully. "My cookies are done!"

Zorpox took a deep breath, letting out as a sigh as he mumbled at the villain's back. "Fine, _pathetic_, don't do anything _pathetic_."

X X X X

Shego's vacation hadn't quite been going as she planned. First, the plane had lost her luggage-she thought was something that only happened in movies! After a couple of threats, they had been more than motivated to find it, but it still took almost two hours for her to reclaim the baggage. After that, she went to her hotel to check in, only to find out that there was some sort of rabinical conference going on, and all the rooms were booked solid-if she'd come in an hour ago, she'd have had a room. Instead, she was now sleeping at a not quite as nice hotel-she'd really been looking forward to a jacuzzi in her room, too.

Then, she'd gone down to the spa to find out that Midas was out for a week, visiting a niece who was graduating or something. The villainess had tried one of the other masseuses there, but none of them had the golden touch like Midas. She'd thrown one boy out because he'd been ogling her-he was lucky she didn't fry him on the spot; the only thing that had stopped her was the fact that if she hurt one of the employees, she'd be banned for life-it hadn't been worth it, but had come very close.

And, as incredible as it sounded, she'd somehow managed to get a sunburn. She _never _got sunburns-she was lucky if she even got enough of a tan to look like something other than a pale zombie, green skin and all. She hadn't even been out in the sun that long...well, okay, maybe she fell asleep for a couple of hours without rolling over, but she'd tanned that long before without the burns. In all, it was turning out to be the worst vacation that she'd ever been on-and she'd been here less than a day!

Grumbling to herself, she made her way back up to her hotel room, careful not to let the towel in her hands rub across her sunburn. She opened the door, then took three steps inside and flipped on a light. After she turned back into the room, she let loose a very un-Shego-like shriek.

There was a roach in her room.

X X X X

Twenty minutes later, Shego found herself out on the street, stalking down the walkway, luggage in her arms. The nerve of them, throwing her out of the hotel-she'd found a roach in her room for crying out loud. Sure, maybe she'd caused almost ten thousand dollars worth of damage trying to kill the little bug, but it was their fault for not cleaning the room. She had paused once, to look back at the hotel, vowing never to come back.

The green woman was quickly able to find another hotel, in a much better state than the last one. After signing in, she took her luggage up to her room, threw the two suitcases onto her bed, then instantly turned around and headed back outside. She was still not in a good mood, and was in enough control to realize that she needed to take her anger outside, and burn it off by walking around-or else she might destroy another room, and get herself banned from every hotel in the city.

Out on the street, Shego stalked around angrily, no specific destination in mind. She was lost in a haze of frustration, so for the first half hour she didn't sense anything out of the ordinary. It wasn't until she passed her third large shop window that she got the feeling she was being followed. Finally, with something that she could actually focus on doing, the villainess devoted her skills to figuring out who was following her, and why.

By this point, she had gotten her wits about her; she quickly passed in front of one window, then stopped, doing her best to act as if she was examining the merchandise in the window. Instead, she looked in the glass, noting the reflection of the crowd around her. She let her gaze pass over every person in turn, analyzing them carefully. Two caught her eyes almost instantly; the first was an undescript man, of average build and height. She never would have noticed him, except for the calculating look hiding behind his eyes; as his gaze swept over her, she shivered involuntarily, getting the sense of being watched by a predator.

The other man that caught her eye was really nothing more than a young boy. As best she could guess, he was in his early twenties, and looked to be a college kid out on the town. She figured that he was just a rich brat who was looking for an available woman to hit on, and he had latched on to her. He would be the easier of the two to check on, as well as being the easiest to dissuade.

Plus, this might be fun.

The villainess took her opportunity to slip inside a small side street, less crowded, and more secluded. She took stock of her surroundings, then moved over to a small doorway with an overhang, that allowed her to stay unnoticed. As she waited, she smiled evilly to herself, then as the young man appeared, she stepped forwards, snatching the back of his collar and pressing him against the wall. She drove her elbow into his back, and whispered into his ear.

"Why are you following me, pretty boy?" He tried to squirm under her, and she pressed her elbow harder upwards, the pressure against his kidney making him hold stock still, lest she cripple him with a blow. "Don't make me ask again, or you'll spend the next few weeks in rehab."

The boy started blubbering quickly, telling her how attractive she was, how she had caught his eye, and how sorry he was that he was following her. She smirked to herself, and spun him around, slamming him up against the brick behind him. She leveled her dark, glaring eyes at him. "And have we learned our lesson, pretty boy? Don't mess with women who are way out of your league. Especially me." He nodded rapidly, looking around frantically. She considered doing something else to him, but realized that he was scared silly; besides, she was feeling much better after the encounter, finally having a chance to let some of her frustrations go. Maybe Drakken had been right about this trip.

She snorted and shook her head, then tossed the boy out into the street; he ran away without looking back. No, this probably wasn't what Drakken had in mind when he sent her on vacation, but it really didn't matter to her what he thought. As she moved back out into the street, she looked around for the second person following her, but realized there was no one there. She spent a few more minutes wandering around the streets, but couldn't spot her tail again. She figured that she had either been wrong about the man, or else he had figured out that she wasn't to be messed with.

As she made her way back to her hotel, she again got the nagging feeling that someone was watching her, but despite a lengthy study session, she couldn't find anyone else that looked suspicious to her. With all the people milling about, it could have been anyone, but she was still certain that something wasn't right. She turned down a side street, hoping that the smaller number of people would give her a chance to spot her tail.

Finally, after she had almost given up hope, she noticed someone come down the street; this person looked like he didn't belong, and she knew that she had her man. He was different from the other guy she had seen, and she wondered about that, but didn't have time to make any conclusions. She hurried around the next corner, then pulled the same trick she had last time, waiting for the man to follow. First a few seconds, then minutes, it slowly dawned on Shego that the man was wise to her plan. As she slowly peeked around the corner, she didn't see the man; as she went back the way she had come, she didn't see him either, and her sense of being watched was gone.

Shego shook her head back and forth, wondering if she was losing her touch; she used to be able to spot a spy instantly. She wondered if she was getting soft, working with Drakken so long-sure, he paid well, and she liked the work, but it really wasn't as stimulating as some of the other work she had performed; or maybe she was just getting bored with the rut they were in-fight Kim Possible, spend a week or two in jail, break out, rinse and repeat. She shook her head and considered. She figured one, maybe two more take over the world schemes, and if nothing changed, she was going to look for some other work, even if just on the side.

Lost in her thoughts, the villainess found her hotel and went inside, passing by a dark haired, dark skinned man waiting at the entrance. She didn't notice the man's eyes following her as she entered the building.

X X X X X X X X

After breakfast, Kim had gone back up to her room, passing her mom on the way. They exchanged good mornings, and Anne asked her daughter about what she had planned for the day. Kim mentioned she was going to be busy, at Monique's house, and her mother wished her a good day, the adult saying that she was going to go in to the hospital for a few hours and then be back for lunch.

The teen finally made it up to her room, then spent a few hours doing some odds and ends stuff, until her friend was awake. She took the time to check on some of her school work, including the different activities she was involved in, checking that everything was following her schedule. Kim then took the time to make her schedule for the next week, circling Thursday, when Ron would finally be home. She smiled, then quickly marked up the rest of her calendar, until it looked like a jumbled mess.

Next the teen sat at her computer, making a number of journal entries for the last week; she hadn't really been working on her diary as much, so it was a little behind. As she filled things in, she reviewed what had happened over the last few days. In hindsight, she was way too busy, but there wasn't anything she could do about it. She also took the time to update the logs she kept of her different missions.

Her mom had encouraged the idea, originally, but Kim actually found it pretty useful, too, as it often allowed her to put the villain's plan into perspective, letting her piece together their plots easier. She wrote about her fight with Monkey Fist earlier, then her confrontation with Duff Killigan. She also filled in as many details as she could about Shego's current plot, ending the log with a set of question marks, since she still wasn't quite sure what was going on.

After finishing, Kim checked the time, and realized that it was late enough that Monique should be up. With a small, almost evil smirk, the teen set out, making her way down to her friend's house. The walk took her down a few blocks, eventually leading her to the other teen's house. The red head made her way up the sidewalk to Monique's house.

Kim paused at the door, looking, then reached up to knock. She heard a small shuffling sound from inside, then nothing. Rolling her eyes, Kim knocked again. "I know you're in there, Monique, I heard you moving. You might as well open the door. I'm not leaving."

Another shuffling sound from inside, then more silence. Kim chuckled. "I've broken through solid metal doors, and I beat villain's security on a daily basis. You think the little lock on this door is going to stop me?" Finally there was a sigh, then a clicking sound as the door was unlocked to reveal a glaring Monique.

Smiling sweetly, Kim stepped inside past her friend. The dark haired teen spoke sarcastically. "Well, just come right in, girl, make yourself at home. Can I get you anything?"

The red head turned, wrinkling her nose. "A better attitude, maybe. I told you, Monique, I'm not going to start a fire." She continued under her breath. "And even if I do, I'll put it out."

Monique narrowed her eyes at her friend, then finally sighed, defeated. She motioned Kim over to a chair at the kitchen table, then went and sat across from her. "All right, Kim, what do you want to work on?"

Startled, Kim shook her head. "Me? I thought you were the one coming up with ideas and stuff. I don't know, I guess we should start with something simple, right?"

"Right, simple. Preferably without fire...or anything that burns...or anything with sharp knives...or-" She abruptly cut off when Kim slapped a hand over her mouth. She mumbled a few more times into the palm, then finally shook her head as the red head removed her hand. "You have no sense of humor."

Kim growled. "Ron's my sense of humor. All that's left now is a burning desire to succeed. Come on, Monique, I'm serious about this, I want to learn to cook."

"Fine." She stood, moving over to a small drawer at one edge of the kitchen, and started digging through it.

"What are you looking for, some sort of utensil?"

"Home insurance. I want to make sure my parents are all paid up."

X X X X X X X X

Zorpox studied Shego with a smirk hidden under his holographic projector; his long cape still draped over his shoulders, drifting down his back. This device was perhaps the greatest creation that Wade had ever made; a little tweaking from the caped villain made it even more useful. It now actively stored the patterns of people around him, allowing him to actively create adaptive camouflage that he could change with the touch of a button on his belt. The different scanners and sensors implanted in his clothing allowed him to take any guise around him.

This technology would allow him to go anyplace he could dream of, without every being noticed. Unfortunately, it wasn't perfected-the power requirements were extremely high, and it still had a tendency to phase out and reveal things about the wearer. He had nearly gotten spotted earlier; as Shego had turned in the window, he knew that she had noticed him. The device had flickered, no doubt causing the attentive villainess to see something out of the ordinary. If he could solve these two flaws inherent in the device, he might have a creation more valuable that any doomsday device-but until he got everything working perfectly, the was always the chance of discovery-as Shego had so aptly shown him.

Content in the knowledge that she was suspicious, but not knowledgeable about him, he waited a few more minutes, just looking at the hotel, before he finally turned, then made his way back into the crowd, his hologram covered body quickly blending in the sea of bodies.

He had one other place to visit today.

X X X X

Unnoticed by either of the villains, Will Du moved through the crowd, a small smile on his face. He watched as Shego went inside her hotel, then spotted the other man that was observing her, quickly making a note to check the man's background. As he shifted, he winced and reached a hand over his shoulder to rub his back-the green villainess had certainly been upset about something. He had posed as the college aged man following Shego, hoping to get a good look at her; he hadn't realized how close a look he was going to get. Fortunately, between his disguise, and their relatively infrequent encounters, the villainess hadn't recognized him.

He frowned to himself; despite certain evidence to the contrary, it really looked like Shego was on vacation-and he wasn't sure why she would go through such a charade just to throw someone off. At the same time, Dr Director felt that something was up, and had sent him here to keep a discrete eye on her-and he'd learned over the years to trust his leader's instincts.

The Global Justice Director had received a notice that Shego had put in a reservation at a hotel in the tropical region, and had realized that something was odd about the timing. GJ was generally content to let the villains have their vacations-it was time they weren't trying anything evil, and anything that freed up resources that could be used elsewhere was good in the Director's book. She always had the villains watched, however, in case it was just a ploy, but so far none of them had tried anything hostile on their vacation time.

Shego was something of an odd one when it came to her vacations. She rarely ever took any, except for holidays, or times when Drakken was getting on her nerves. It seemed that for all of her laziness, she actually preferred to be at work as much as she could-probably because Drakken let her lounge around at work, too, so she was making money even if she wasn't doing anything. What was so odd about this vacation was that GJ hadn't heard anything about Drakken's latest plan.

As far as GJ knew, Drakken was on a break, regrouping and trying to hatch a new plan after his last defeat at Kim's hand. Then, Du had gotten the word about Killigan, completely unrelated, and found the villain unconscious. After the man had woken up, he revealed that he had been attacked by Drakken and an other, unknown assailant. When queried if the other person could have been Shego, Killigan had adamantly denied it, indicating that the other person was male.

This, obviously, concerned GJ. If Drakken was working with a new sidekick, or even a completely unknown, new villain, it could be bad for Global Justice-thus Du had been sent out to try and figure out what he could about the situation. The fact that Shego was out on vacation like this helped to support the possibility that someone else was helping Drakken; yet at the same time, the Director had not given the go ahead to spy on Drakken himself. Besides the legal ramification, the villain was Kim's arch foe, as well as her current target-as such, he was off limits to the top agent.

To top everything off, this morning Dr Director herself had called Du with an update-someone had demolished a building in southern Florida, in an area under reconstruction. It had actually taken more than a day before the local law enforcement had been able to confirm that it wasn't an accident. Someone had hacked into the server systems for train locomotion in the area, causing one vehicle to jump its tracks. Du had originally thought that maybe the train had something valuable on it, but a quick search of records revealed that the train was no more important than any other in the area.

Other agents had been dispatched to perform their own search, with surprising results; they had learned that a small time villain/henchman, Hank Perkins, had been selling supplies to another villain. Unfortunately, they had been unable to learn anything else, save that the one time temp was selling Selenium. That in and of itself was strange-the material had no real use outside of antique electronics, and a few other specialized areas-none of which were likely for super villains.

A more thorough search of the surrounding area had led the Global Justice agents to find a camera nearby, that had footage of the trade and subsequent destruction of the building. The angle was all wrong for recording what had actually happened, but it had gotten a long distance shot of two figures approaching in a hovercraft-similar to the ones that Drakken used. A glitch had managed to obscure any details of the hovercraft and much of the footage of the two figures, however a single shot had been salvaged. Video analysis technology had been used to figure out that the first figure was likely Shego, due to her height and proportions. The second figure was of a similar size, and masculine, but otherwise indescribable-but definitely not the taller Dr Drakken.

Du frowned, watching the other man observing Shego; some agent instinct told him to follow the man. He quickly checked his surroundings, tapping a small button on his wrist watch; it sent a signal to another agent nearby. Du knew the other man would be able to keep an eye on Shego while he followed this man. The agent kept his pace measured, making himself nearly unnoticeable, and as far as he could tell, undetected.

He quickly analyzed the other man, determining that he was near enough to Shego's height that he could possibly be the man that was seen in the hovercar. The surveillance covered nearly eight blocks before the man turned down a side alley. Du followed, cautiously, his eye darting all around, doing his best to make sure he wasn't surprised by the man. He entered the alley, and realized that it was a dead end. Fortunately, the man he had followed was standing at the end, staring at the wall blocking his way.

The top Global Justice agent walked forward carefully, keeping an eye on the the cloaked figure. "Who are you? State your name."

All he got was a low chuckle.

Will spoke again, a warning. "Turn around, slowly, so that I can see your hands. I will stun you if I have to."

Again he got nothing but a small laugh. The agent was through being nice.

"You're under arrest, put your hands up and surrender."

Finally the man spoke. "Surrender? Not likely..." He turned, his posture radiating danger.

"...And not to the likes of you."

Sensing the danger, the agent raised his hand, aiming his taser wrist watch, intent to disable, then figure out who this person was. "You can't get away."

As the figure moved toward him, Du clicked the button on his weapon, watching as a pair of needle thin, sharp darts shot out, crackling with electricity. The figure raised his hand, palm out, and the darts struck with a sharp sizzle. The cloaked man starting jerking and spasming as the electricity worked. At the same time, Du stepped forward to reach up for the figure's cloak.

Underneath the holographic emitter, Zorpox grinned.

The villain moved swiftly towards Du, driving his sparking palm against the agent's chest. Zorpox's specialized gloves, protected with both the armor plating, stopping the darts, and the electrical nullifying material, had saved him from the disabling shock. The two wires were still putting out a charge, however, and as the villain's palm impacted Du, it caused the man to jerk himself, the electricity making his muscles spasm as he lost control, his body tensing. The cloaked villain slammed Du back against the wall behind him, watching as the electricity sparked and finally rendered the GJ agent unconscious.

Zorpox stepped back, letting Will slump to the ground; the villain casually raised his palm, then used his other hand to pull out the two darts, tossing the ends onto the agents chest, the battery recharging as it prepared for a second attack. Zorpox went down to one knee, waiting a few seconds, as Du regained consciousness, still lightheaded and uncertain, unable to focus on recognizing the figure in front of him. The villain spoke in a sarcastic whisper.

"Look like I can 'get away.' But don't worry, we'll meet again, 'Top Agent' Will Du. You can count on it."

The agent coughed and spasmed, then tried to reach for the villain, but the shock had left him disabled. Zorpox walked off, his laughter echoing in Du's mind long after he had gone.

X X X X X X X X

"Kimmie? Where have you been all day?"

At the inquiry from her mother, the red head looked startled for a second, then shrugged. She had just returned from her friend's house, and Anne had caught her walking through the door. "I was at Monique's house, working on some stuff. She had some things to do, so I decided to come home, maybe watch some TV or something for a while."

"Okay, Kimmie." The teen walked by her parent, and as she did, Ann sniffed, then asked. "You smell smokey. Did something happen? I heard some fire engines earlier in the day."

Kim didn't turn, speaking non-commitally. "Oh, it was no big, just a small fire, I helped put it out. Um, anyway, I have to go mom, we can talk later."

"Dinner's in an hour and half!" Anne called after her retreating daughter.

Kim nodded and called back, then made her way upstairs. It wasn't until she was in the safety of her own room that she relaxed, her hand drifting up to lightly brush her hair, the singed ends standing stiff. The teen winced to herself; Monique had been so mad. Kim was going to have to do something to make it up to her friend. She grumbled slightly, though-it wasn't like she burned the house down, and besides, skillets were cheap.

She flopped back on the bed, spending almost an hour reviewing what had happened, and trying to decide what the best way of apologizing would be. She considered quite a few different things, then remembered something her friend had mentioned one day. The teen walked over to her dresser, grabbing her small jewelry box on top. She usually didn't wear much jewelry, but she did have a few things she would wear when she felt like dressing up, for dances, dates, and the like. Her friend had commented on a particular bracelet that Kim had, and the red head realized it would make a good peace offering.

With that small bit of trouble taken care of, Kim looked at the time, noting it was still about a half an hour until dinner. She smiled slowly to herself, then stood, and made her way downstairs, hesitating at the edge of the kitchen, then approaching her mother from behind.

"So, mom, whatcha doing?"

"Kim!" The adult whirled around, her back to the counter top, she backed up, looking fearfully at her daughter. "Out, out, shoo, I'm cooking dinner."

Kim gave her best puppydog pout. "I know, and I want to help. Please?"

Anne slapped a hand over her eyes, and shook her head. "No, sorry, I...it's a one person job, Kimmie, and, well, I'd hate to take you away from your homework."

The teen rolled her eyes. "I'm all caught up for the week, Mom, I've even a little ahead."

"Well, um, you've probably got a mission or something to take care of, right?"

A head shake left the adult desperate. "Are you sure?" She took two steps backwards, slowly, then placed a hand under the edge of the counter, her fingertips finding a small button, then depressing it.

Somewhere in Middleton, in a normal, nondescript house, a small alarm began blaring. Wade jerked his head around with a start, noting the small pulsing alarm in the corner of his computer screen. A small red skull with green eyes flashed at him, blinking rapidly, letting him know about the code red alert. He started typing rapidly on his keyboard, his eyes drifting over a list of possible missions, before one finally caught his eye. He quickly hit the alarm for the Kimmunicator.

As Kim opened her mouth to reply to her mother's statement, she heard a beeping from her pocket, pulling the device out, watching Wade's face appear. "Wade, come on, you have terrible timing. Can't this wait, I'm in the middle of something."

The super genius shook his head. "Sorry, Kim, but I just got a hit on the site, and it needs your attention. Get your mission stuff together, and call me back, and I'll brief you."

"Fine." Kim blew some hair out of her face as she shut the device down, then looked at her mother suspiciously. "You didn't have anything to do with this, did you?"

"Me?" Anne played the part perfectly. "Kimberly Ann, you think that I can just get Wade to call in an emergency like that?" She looked at her food, then back at her daughter. "I think you'd better go, it sounds like someone really needs your help."

The teen sighed, then turned, making her way up to her room. As soon as Ann was sure her daughter was out of hearing range, she spoke to the empty kitchen. "Thanks, Wade, you rock."

His disembodied voice floated through the kitchen. "I try."

X X X X X X X X

As Zorpox left the GJ agent, he mused quietly to himself, thinking. It seemed like Global Justice had gotten more involved in the situation, although he shouldn't have been surprised. They did have a tendency to stick their nose where it didn't belong. He chuckled lightly, gripping and releasing his hand; it had been surprisingly therapeutic to face off with Will Du, to put him in his place. The teen had never like the smug agent, especially because of the way he treated Kim.

He smiled to himself, knowing that he would have plenty of future opportunities to put Du in his place. Until then, however, he had other things to do. First he needed to pay a visit to a certain resort. As Zorpox made his way across town, this time without someone following him, he considered what he had left to do for his plan. He blinked, realizing that what he was about to do was the last thing needed for his immediate plan. Everything else he planned to do would have much more long-lasting impact.

Finally reaching the building, the villain stopped at the front doors, looking upwards. A tall, thirty story building stood in front of him. He admired the large sombrero on the top, smirking, then walked in to the lobby. He gave a quick look around, finally finding a receptionist. He headed over, grinning widely, in character as he approached.

The receptionist looked up, her face expressionless. "Can I help you?"

Zorpox, guised as an electrician, motioned with his hands. "Actually, Miss, I'm here to help you. I heard that you've been having some problems with your electrical systems, and you wanted to make sure everything was ship shape for the conference on Wednesday."

The lady frowned at him, looking down at the papers in front of her. "I'm sorry, sir, I don't remember receiving any notice." She looked up. "Besides, I don't think we've been having any electrical problems, you must have the wrong building."

"Nope, I'm sure the little lady who called mentioned this place." He turned around, and as his back was to the receptionist, he touched a button on his belt, causing a small feedback through the building's electrical systems. The lights flickered, and her computer clicked off; the elevators made a dinging sound, with the doors sticking half open. "There, see, I knew something was going on."

"Oh!" The lady gave a small exclamation of surprise, then shrugged. "I'm sorry, I must not have gotten the notice." She looked at her computer, now rebooting. "All right, here's a pass." She dug around on her table, finally holding it up, then handing it over. "I think that some of the terminals are up on the twenty eight floor, so you might start there. The bosses will be meeting on the thirtieth floor, so you might check there as well, just to ensure everything is working right."

"Will do, Miss, thank you for your time." Zorpox tipped his head, walking over to the stairs. "I'll just head on up and see what I can find out. I'm sure this'll all be sorted out in no time."

As the villain reached the stairs, his affable demeanor vanished, his face becoming much more serious. He looked upwards, noting the long climb, then quickly set out. It took him almost twenty minutes to climb the stairs, finally reaching the top floor. He exited the stairway back onto the main floor, quickly noting the single conference room. The entire top floor was taken up by the single room, a location for the shareholders and CEOs of the company to meet.

He walked over to the doors, noting with a smirk that they were pneumatic sliding doors, somewhat similar to the ones on the Seniors' island. This would make his job that much easier. He quickly popped off a panel on the side of the door, rooting around in the wiring until he reached a small computer. He pulled out the cable from his belt's microcomputer, and wired in, passing a new set of programming, allowing him to control it remotely.

Closing the panel back up, he made his way over to the central table, noting there was a number of buttons there, as well as a main video screen, probably used for conference calls. He was able to hack in to this as well, and with a little more reprogramming, everything was in place. Smiling, he checked his handwork over. Suitably satisfied, the villain turned and left the conference room, knowing that everything was now set for this plan.

X X X X

"...do you even remember your training?"

Du grimaced at the dressing down he was getting. The Director had not been pleased that her top agent had been disabled by some unknown assailant. "What were you thinking, going after someone without backup? You're lucky he didn't kill you, you're too valuable to GJ to lose over something like this. And what if he'd been working for WWEE? You could have been compromised, you know enough about GJ that you could do some real damage."

He faced straight ahead, doing his best not to move, uttering the occasional 'Yes, Ma'am' every time she said something that seemed to require his input. Finally as she finished, she took a deep breath. "Alright, now, tell me what you know about this man; assuming he was a man, of course."

The agent nodded, still keeping a rigid pose, lest he incur her wrath. "His voice was definitely masculine, and while I didn't see his face, his body shape makes it very likely he was a male." He hesitated for a second, then asked, "Is there any video of his face?"

Letting her irritation show, the Director shook her head. "No, and that's what makes things so much worse. It's like he wasn't even there. I've got multiple video analysis going on, but nothing, the cameras are all garbled, or else he isn't there." Finally she motioned with her hand. "At ease, Will, I'm just as upset with this situation as I am with you. It's not just your fault you were ambushed, you couldn't have known there was any danger."

Hesitantly, the agent relaxed his posture, then looked at the footage she had called up on her computer monitor. He nodded as well, seeing that there was no way to tell who was in the video. "Something about this doesn't seem right, though."

The director looked at him. "Explain."

He gave an almost imperceptible shrug. "He didn't seem to want to fight me. In fact, he seemed almost annoyed that I interrupted him. I don't think he knew that I was there, or watching Shego. I think he was watching her, though." He mused for a second. "It can't be coincidence that Shego goes on a supposed vacation, and someone is watching her. When you factor in that someone else helped Drakken attack Killigan, it makes me wonder if she is just a decoy."

The Director nodded. "That does fit the facts, but I'm still not convinced. Considering how much pride Shego has, and how much she likes to get her way, I just can't see her letting herself be used this way. She's not a decoy, or puppet, or lackey-she would argue that she's just as important as Drakken."

Betty turned, away, back to her computer, tapping the screen. It showed a picture of the mystery man in the hovercar. "Whatever is going on, though, this man is key to everything. Forget Shego for the moment, let the other agents watch her, she's not going anywhere. Du, I want you to see what you can make of this, see if there is some way we can trap this man, find out what is going on."

X X X X X X X X

Kim made her way in to her room, grimacing, thinking dirty thoughts about Wade. An emergency! Sometimes she wondered if her friend just liked interrupting her. The genius had called to tell her all about some specific emergency she had to take care of, how urgent it was for her to go and help someone. She hadn't even considered that he could be stalling; but by the time she got to her 'mission' she was suspicious. As she exited her ride's car, her fears were confirmed.

Wade had her rescuing a cat out of a tree.

Admittedly, she had done it before, and she would no doubt do it again, but to be interrupted for something that seemed so trivial, got her more than a little frustrated. As she saw the small little girl, tearfully looking up at her cat, the teen had sighed, then walked over, going to one knee to talk to her. After comforting the girl, Kim had quickly climbed the tree, whispering and talking to the cat, before easily grabbing it, stroking its fur as she made her way to the ground.

Kim had passed the cat over, and then the small girl had thanked the teen, quickly giving the red head a hug. The teen had smiled and hugged her back, feeling a little better after the good deed. She had then said goodbye to the little girl, and headed home.

After her daring adventure, the Kim had then arrived home just in time for supper, completely missing her chance to help cook with her mother. She had ate in near silence, giving her mother a long stare, still almost sure that her mom had somehow caused the emergency. Kim had finished the meal, then gone upstairs, where she flopped on the bed with nothing at all to do. She finally rolled over, looking at the clock, realizing it was still fairly early in the evening.

With nothing better to do, Kim pulled out her book on cooking, and the spent the next couple of hours reading, going through the rest of the book. Checking the time again, the teen decided to call it a night. She knew that she had church the next day, so she wouldn't be back home until afternoon-actually, right before lunch. Smirking to herself, Kim knew that she was going to get her mother to help with her cooking, whether the adult wanted to or not.

X X X X X X X X

Zorpox returned to the lair, late in the evening, chuckling to himself. Everything was going perfectly-in the short term, his plan was all set, and there was nothing Drakken, Shego, or even Kim could do to stop him. He made his way in to his room, quickly sitting back at his computer, to consider. With this plan ready for implementation, he now needed to devote himself to his long term plan. He decided that he would spend the next day researching his plan.

* * *

_**A/N. **And with that, all the pieces are in place for this plot, so feel free to guess what you think is going to happen. I'll be revealing things slowly over the next couple of chapters, before everything comes together with a Kim/Zorpox/Drakken/Shego showdown._


	16. Newsworthy

_**A/N **Shorter chapter today, but still a little more set up, plus a little more of Kim cooking._

_Thanks to Eddy13 for beta checking._

* * *

**Chapter 16 Newsworthy**

_(Sunday-Week 3)_

Kim's Sunday morning passed in a flash. She woke up to the smell of bacon and eggs, knowing that her mother was cooking the family's usual weekend breakfast. It was really the only time that the entire family was guaranteed to eat together, and Ann always took the opportunity to cook for them.

The red headed teen looked over to her dresser, noting that Rufus was already gone, probably down in the kitchen, ready to eat. She smiled to herself, then quickly took the time to get herself ready for the day, finally going downstairs just as her mother was calling up to tell that the food was ready. Kim joined her parents and brothers, and they ate together, discussing their week.

After eating, the teen went back up to her room, just killing some time before church. She looked over a few fashion websites, including Club Banana, making sure that she was able to keep herself in style. She was no longer as 'fashion forward' as she had been her sophomore year, but still cared about her look-she just wasn't going to try to get any clothing because it was in style this month, only to go out the next. She preferred clothing that would last her a while.

Finally church time rolled around, and she got ready with her family, and they all loaded up in the vehicle and left. As Kim held Rufus on her lap, she couldn't help but wonder what Ron was doing.

X X X X X X X X

As Zorpox woke up, he rolled himself on his side, and looked over at his clock, noting that he was right on time. He stood, stretching his body, then after getting dressed, moved over to sit at his computer. He called up his plan, looking over his short and long term goals, trying to decide the best way to go about his scheme.

He looked over the different parts of his plan, smiling at the seemingly unrelated items. Selenium. Control of Smarty Mart's network. Duff Killigan's Haggis recipe. His electronics in the Bueno Nacho headquarters building at the resort. All put together, however, they gave him a plan that he was sure would succeed. And even if it didn't, there were other options. Zorpox made a note that he needed to use the connection to Bueno Nacho's Headquarters to make a few adjustments.

Meanwhile, the villain closed that file, quickly pulling up another one, his eyes roaming over the design, considering his scheme carefully for any flaw. He knew that he would have to make adjustments in the future, for such variables as Kim Possible, but the plan itself was sound. He already had a few pieces of that greater plan, and would continue to work on it in the future. The villain used his computer terminal to put out a search for another item that he would need, and let it run, deciding to work on something else.

Standing and stretching, Zorpox looked around his room, then exited, making his way to his lab. Once secured inside, he worked on some different projects and things, including a few more upgrades to his outfit, as well as a small bracelet. The villain spent a few hours working on these things, and soon lunch time rolled around. He grasped the bracelet in his hand, looking at it, then smiled and tucked it away inside a drawer. As he stood to make his way down to the cafeteria, he reached a hand up, placing a single finger on the headband Drakken was making him wear. He traced the edge around it and gave a devious smile.

X X X X X X X X

"Mom, I really hate to ask, but do you think you could try to help me, one more time?"

It was just after they had gotten back from church, and her mother was focused on the kitchen, and had been considering what to make. The adult turned to her daughter, then opened her mouth, but Kim continued. "I know that you swore you'd never do it again, after the crock pot incident, but I'm getting better, I really am...I-I mean, Ron helped me all that time in Home ec, and he said I was getting good at the end." At her mother's disbelieving look, she amended her statement. "Well, he did say I was getting _better_."

"Besides, I've been practicing and stuff, it's not like you're just going to be teaching me the basics, I've read some books, and tried cooking on my own, here, and I spent some time with Monique, so I've learned a lot, like measuring, and cutting, and plenty of things not to do."

Ann still wasn't convinced. Kim tried a different tactic. "Mom, Dad always says that anything is possible for a Possible, but you're the one that always says I could do anything, the one that says that I shouldn't give up just because it's hard. Well, it's going to be hard, but I want your help. Please?" She called upon the power of the puppydog pout.

The adult took a deep breath, but knew the battle was already lost-the puppy dog pout was the ultimate weapon. "Alright, Kimmie, we can try again-but I get final call over when we call it quits." Her daughter looked ready to argue the point, but finally agreed. "So what do you want to learn to cook, then? I think we'll avoid cookies, brownies, or anything else to do with the oven."

"Um, maybe something simple then?" Kim frowned, thinking, then smiled. "Oh, I know, what about Macaroni and Cheese? You always said that was something that was quick and easy to make."

The adult took in a sharp breath. "Boiling water? I'm not so sure..." One look at her daughter, and she sighed. "All right, but we'll need to be careful, things can get pretty hot."

Ann turned and went into the kitchen, motioning Kim to follow. Her dad, sitting at the kitchen table and working on something, looked up. "So, what's for lunch?"

"Mac and Cheese." Kim's voice came, cheerfully.

Her father frowned, glancing from his daughter to his wife. Ann nodded, confirming his fears. He stood quickly. "You know what, I think I'd just be in the way here, so I'm going to go down to my study." James left, taking his tablet with him, not even daring to look back. Kim and her mom shared a glance.

Ann smirked. "You know, most people work years to get a reputation."

Kim just gave a disgusted growl.

X X X X

Kim set the pot of water on the stove, then turned it on, watching the burner heat up. "Okay, so first up is getting the water boiling." She looked over the instructions, then back to her mother for confirmation. The adult nodded, and as Kim turned back to the stove, Ann looked at the counter top, where a certain naked mole rat was standing. Rufus looked back at the adult, a small shiver running down his back. He would never get used to being around Kim when she was cooking.

Fortunately, so far nothing was going wrong. Kim heated the water up on the stove, and soon enough it was bubbling and boiling. The teen grabbed the macaroni noodles and dumped them inside. The water splashed up a bit, nearly getting some on her hand. She flinched back, then breathed out and tried to relax, watching the noodles carefully. Kim's mother bit her lip, watching the teen, waiting as well.

The red headed teen watched the noodles as they became less rigid. Her mother looked at her, mentioning, "Now we need to see if the noodles are soft enough." Ann turned her back for a minute, only to whip back around as she heard a scraping spoon.

"Oh, I know how to do this." Kim smiled, grabbing the large spoon, and sticking it in the boiling water, she scooped up a small handful of noodles. "Ron showed me how to do this." She took the handle and gave a flick of her wrist, the macaroni launching into the air, bouncing off the ceiling.

Ann swiftly took the spoon from Kim's hand and set it down. "Actually, Kimmie, that's usually done with spaghetti noodles, and you don't have to fling it quite that hard." She took the spoon in hand again, and poked at the noodles. "Besides, with these, it's pretty easy to just poke them and see how firm they are. They look to be pretty good now."

"Okay." Kim chirped, reaching her hand over for the cheese mix. "This goes in next, right?"

The adult nodded, and opened her mouth to give some advice, but Kim, gung ho as always, quickly dumped the cheese mix in. Her aim wasn't quite perfect, and some of the dried cheese missed the pot, instead hitting the burner underneath. It flared up, causing Kim to cough, then give her mom a sheepish grin. "I, um, stir it next, right?"

"Yes." Ann grabbed her daughters wrist as the teen placed her hand on the large spoon. "Carefully now, that's boiling water, remember."

The teen nodded back, sufficiently chastised. She placed the spoon in the mac and cheese, and slowly started to stir, doing her best to mix the water and cheese for the dish. She watched as the liquid in the pot darkened and thickened, becoming the cheesy mix that she was use to. She spent the next few minutes, stirring, then looked back over her shoulder. Her mom was hovering, and the teen jumped. "Mom! I'm doing fine, see?"

"Yes, um, I guess you are, Kimmie, dear." Ann sent a sidelong glance at Rufus. "You're doing pretty well."

Kim smiled brightly, then went back to stirring. Her mom opened her mouth to give some more advice, but she paused as there was a muffled sound from above; it sounded like some sort of explosion, from the twins room. She looked at Kim, weighing her options-her daughter seemed to be doing fine right now, but she had a tendency to have...disastrous results in the kitchen. On the other hand, the twins had just done something that needed investigating. "Kimmie, I'm going to check that out, why don't you just turn the burner off, and I'll be right back."

The red head narrowed her eyes, not liking her mother's tone. "I'm doing fine here, mom, I'm not going to start a fire. I'm just stirring-nothing can go wrong. It's not like I can set water on fire."

Ann sighed, torn, then finally turned and took off for her sons' bedroom at a near run. The quicker she check on them, the quicker she could get back.

X X X X X X X X

Zorpox tossed the last pan into the sink in the kitchen, then nodded to the henchman nearby. There were half a dozen men working inside, tidying things up after lunch. It was sort of a way for the men to help the caped villain out, taking care of the cleaning so he didn't have to. He appreciated the gesture, knowing that underneath it all, Drakken's men could have been much more useful, if he would just spend the time to train them, work with them, help them to succeed.

Shrugging, he walked out. It really wasn't for him to work and help Drakken's henchmen, and regardless, he didn't need henchmen himself. Ignoring the thoughts, the villain instead went into the main lab, in order to check on Drakken's progress. To his surprise, the villain wasn't there working; instead he seemed to be off doing something else. Zorpox pulled up the camera's footage, then sent the feed to his goggles, causing the screens to pop up like some sort of heads up display. He quickly sifted through the different videos, finally seeing that the mad doctor was taking some sort of break. The footage showed the doctor entering his room, but not leaving.

Curious, Zorpox called up the computer system in Drakken's room, and realized that the mad scientist was working on some sort of weapon systems. He shrugged to himself, knowing that was part of what always made Drakken fail-he got easily sidetracked. It really wouldn't effect his plans, so the caped villain decided to leave him be, just taking the time to note what Drakken was working on.

He seemed to be focused on a number of different weapon systems. There was some sort of buzz saw weapon, a type of plasma catapult system, even a flamethrower. Zorpox shook his head; Drakken seemed to really enjoy his superweapons, and in fact, he was good at making a weapon system. He was a brilliant scientist-he just wasn't a very good leader, or planner.

Zorpox took the time to look over the satellites, and realized that one of them was in far worse condition than the others. A quick inspection revealed that the wiring had been ripped out, and it looked like someone had taken a hammer to the device, as there were many small ripples in the hull where it had been beat on. After a few seconds thought, the caped villain smiled, knowing what had happened.

Somehow, something had happened while Drakken was working. Maybe it was the doctor's own ineptitude, or perhaps something was wrong with the wiring and electronics-regardless, Drakken had gotten more than a little angry, and taken his anger out on the satellite. He had then retreated to his room to work on his other project, using the weapon designs as a sort of stress relief.

Zorpox moved away, looking over the lab some more, just checking things, to ensure that there wasn't anything going on that he didn't know about. Nothing appeared to be out of the ordinary, and the caped villain was soon satisfied, assured of Drakken's harmlessness.

X X X X

Drakken looked over the weapon designs he was working on, studying them carefully for any flaw. Not noticing anything obvious, he filed them away for later, figuring he could use them on some sort of future plan. Meanwhile, he reached a hand over to open a small drawer in his cabinet, pulling out a small glass bottle, and number of jumbled parts.

Now, in the safety of his room, he had the peace to work.

X X X X X X X X

Ann looked at her twin sons. "You boys know not to do any rocket simulations in the house. Look at your wall, it's black! No more inventions with rocket fuel for the next week!"

"Aww, Mom..."

"...and we were just about to do some tests on the rocket and fin designs..."

"...we think dad's J200 Rocket fuel would be perfect for this..."

The adult shook her head again. "No, maybe you'll learn your lesson this time. Clean this all up, and we'll talk about it more tonight with your father." The boys gave a characteristic whine, but nodded. Ann opened the door to their room, then started to make her way downstairs, planning to talk with her husband about the boys, but she got sidetracked when she heard a rapid, beeping noise. She jerked her head around, remembering that her daughter was still cooking in the kitchen. Her eyes widened as she realized that the noise was the kitchen fire alarm.

Ann rushed down to the kitchen, pausing at the doorway as she noticed thick, black smoke pouring out. She coughed, then managed to make her way inside, spotting Kim, sitting cross legged on the floor, her head in her hands, Rufus standing on the floor and patting her leg. The adult gave a sigh of relief as she spotted the macaroni pot sitting in the sink, the black smoke billowing out from it. She realized that Kim had acted quickly, and doused it in water, putting out the fire.

At the loud alarm, James and the twins had come running, trying to see what was going on. After realizing there was no danger, Ann had been able to shoo them off. She went over to sit by her daughter, placing her back against the cabinet doors under her counter. "What happened? Are you okay, Kimmie?"

Kim groaned and nodded, sitting up and thumping her head back. "Everything was going fine after you left, I was stirring the mac and cheese, and it was thickening up like it was supposed to. I figured you'd be right back, so I kept stirring, and noticed that things were getting a little harder to stir, so I really had to start putting some energy into it. It was getting more and more dry, so I thought I'd see if I could find something to put in to keep it wet. I...uh, guess I got sidetracked looking, and forgot to check on it, and then it was burning."

Rufus gave a little chirp, standing tall, raising his arms above his head. "Flames, this high!"

Both red heads gave him a glare, and he turned his head down, almost bashfully. "Hnk, sorry." He smiled. "Pretty though!"

Ann couldn't help but smile back at that. "I think we were going for 'edible' first, Rufus." The adult stood, then reached down to grab Kim's hand, pulling her daughter to her feet.

As she stood, Kim shook her head. "I think you and Monique were right." Ann looked at her quizzically, so the teen explained. "You said I should wait for Ron. I don't know, everything just seems easier with him, it all makes more sense." She breathed out. "I just seem so much more relaxed. He'll be back this week, so I can wait." Kim leaned over to give her mom a hug. "Thanks for trying."

She smiled back. "It was no big." Ann looked at the burnt mac and cheese, then shook her head. She went into the living room, and returned a minute later. "Well, since I don't feel like cooking now, I'll go out and bring something back. How about Bueno Nacho?" Kim nodded, so the adult smiled, holding her keys up, then went into the garage, calling to Kim. "I'll bring us back some Nacos."

Kim grimaced as the door closed. She looked at the hardened remains of their lunch, then took a spoon to scrape at it. "Nacos? Well, I guess they won't be much worst than this..."

X X X X

After lunch-the nacos really weren't that bad-Kim found herself alone in her room. She felt like screaming; she was alone, again. She couldn't believe how out of sorts she was when her best friend was gone.

More than a little frustrated at her lack of anything to do, she finally stood up, walking over to her dresser where Rufus was taking another mole rat-sized nap. He gave a little squawk as she plucked him up, but soon relaxed as she slipped him into her pocket. Rufus cuddled back down, against the side of her leg, soon asleep again.

Kim gave her pocket a small pat, feeling the mole rat's warm body. She made her way downstairs, then leaned her head in to her parents' room, where her mom was currently busy with something. "Hey, mom, I'm going to go in to the children's ward for a couple of hours."

The adult nodded, waving her hand. "All right, Kimmie, have fun. You're taking Rufus, right? He loves to play with them." Kim nodded back, patting her pocket again, then left.

X X X X X X X X

Zorpox found himself back in his room, around mid-afternoon, preparing himself for working more on his long-term plans. He pulled up the accounts he still had, checking over the funds, and assuring himself he had enough. With plenty in the accounts, he smiled, then began pulling up information on different companies, checking over their locations, and their products, before finally deciding on one. The caped villain called up the companies information, noting the stock.

With a simple click of a button, the villain was able to buy a large amount of stock in the company, putting it entirely in his control. The company itself had been failing, so it had been fairly easy and cheap to buy enough of the company-he controlled seventy-six percent of the shares, and set up a program to continue to buy out the rest of the company as he was able.

Surprised at the simplicity of this part of his plan, he nevertheless continued, quickly putting a phone call in to the company's headquarters. He was able to reach the CEO's secretary, and after a few minutes to convince the man, he was chatting with the CEO himself.

"Um, hello?"

"Hello sir." Zorpox kept his voice professional, disguised. "As you may or may not be aware by now, your company has just been bought out. You are now working for me."

The CEO choked down his first reply. "Yes sir! I...um, what did you say your name was, again?"

"I didn't." Zorpox keyed something on his computer, sending an email copy to the CEO, showing his control of the company. "As you can see, though, I am quite serious about this. My name isn't important. Your obedience is."

The CEO checked things over, finally squeezing the phone a little tighter to his ear. "Okay...sir, what is it you want me to do?"

The caped villain leaned back in his chair, spinning it around a few times as he thought. "From a business standpoint, just keep doing the same things you've been doing. I really don't care about the little details, and if you can make changes to the company to make more money, good for you." He sat up, running a clawed fingertip across his table top. "Here's the deal though-when I do ask you something, you will do it, is that understood?"

Getting a peculiar feeling, the CEO lowered his voice. "We're not talking anything...illegal, are we?"

Zorpox chuckled. "Does it really matter? All business men are crooks, aren't they? Take yourself for instance..." He pulled up the company's running costs over the last few months, highlighting a few key things, then sending the page over to the other man. "...stealing from the company, and while it's failing, too. Tsk Tsk. Could get you some jail time, even with all that money I'm sure you've got."

"Now, while I could turn you in for this, you're much more useful to me where you are. So, here's how this is going to work. Keep your entire product line, that's really of no interest to me. I do, however, have one specific product I want you to market." Zorpox tapped a key, sending a file to the man.

The CEO looked the file over, frowning to himself. He had an engineer's background, so he understood the designs...or rather, he understood how it was made, but not why. "This makes no sense-by making it like this, the product will cost nearly twice as much as anything else on the market. Not to mention with the materials you've used, it will be over twenty percent less efficient than our current model. They only real advantage I see to this thing is that it extremely resistant to any sort of power surge." He spoke back into the phone, confused. "There's no way you can justify these costs for something as simple as a-"

Zorpox cut him off. "I told you, I don't need your understanding, just your obedience. Some will buy the product, and that's really all I need. The rest will take care of itself. Trust me-within six months time, you will have more money than you know what to do with. But, since I'm feeling rather generous right now, I'll say this. If you do this, market this product, and successfully sell at least...oh, say one hundred, one hundred twenty five thousand of them in the next...three months, you'll get a bonus, in the form of twice your _yearly_ salary. Even if you have to lose money for each product sold, I want you to do this. Understood?"

The man gave an affirmative, and Zorpox smiled. "Good, I will contact you in three months time to ensure everything is going to plan."

X X X X X X X X

Kim spent the entire afternoon at the children's ward at the hospital. She was actually starting to like visiting, helping to cheer up the kids. They were so glad to see her, since they really didn't have that much to do while they were in the ward. Rufus was an especially big hit, able to get all the children smiling and giggling with his antics. It had been a while since Kim visited with Ron and Rufus, and she couldn't even imagine what the little mole rat would be able to do with Ron's help, both of them acting as silly or crazy as they needed to get a laugh.

The red head herself didn't feel left out, either, taking the time to give the children a sort of story time, telling them about some of her missions, and the exciting things that she had done. It was sort of funny, though, because she had the boys who were interesting in her exciting stories, and the girls who wanted to hear about the animals and people she had helped. Fortunately, Kim had many stories that involved both, so she spent quite a few hours keeping the kids busy.

Finally it started getting late in the afternoon, and Kim had to beg off, promising the children that she'd visit when she had the chance. They all told her goodbye, with Rufus going from bed to bed squeaking his own goodbyes. As he neared her, Kim reached out and snatched him up, turning and leaving, giving a last quick wave to the kids.

Feeling much better, Kim slowly walked home, Rufus again bedded down in her pocket. She took her time, pacing slowly down her street, letting her mind wander. She almost walked past her house before she realized it, and had to backtrack a few steps before she reached her front door. She entered quickly, cautiously looking around for her brothers. She was never quite sure what the two tweebs had planned, but always better safe than sorry.

As it happened, she lucked out, coming in just at the same time they were coming down. Kim had entered the living room by this point, and they both brushed past her quickly, making their way into the kitchen. The teen spun, realizing that she'd been gone longer than she had thought, her mother having already made supper. She patted her pocket, almost cooing down softly. "Rufus, supper."

The naked mole rat popped up instantly, his head out of the pocket as he sniffed the air. Kim giggled a bit as she noticed that he was holding a miniature fork and knife. He quickly climbed up her side, making a short run around her neck, then perched on her head, his body extended forward. He pointed with his knife, leaning towards the kitchen. "Lets eat!"

Kim plucked him off her head, then went into the kitchen, setting him down on the table as she joined her family for their meal.

X X X X X X X X

Zorpox finally clicked his phone down, nearly five hours after he had first made the call. The CEO had many questions about the product and running of the company, and the caped villain had managed to direct the man in ways that he hoped would allow the company to succeed in the next few months. Just a few simple changes should have the company producing at nearly double the rate, with an actual increase of thirteen percent better quality.

Even better, the plans the villain gave the man would help the company become much more successful-he had spotted more than one cost cutting method that would turn around the company's pitiful past. He had instructed the CEO to subtly buy out other companies as he was able; the blond wanted to have a significant hold on the market within the next three months.

The villain stood and stretched, smiling to himself. With that out of the way, there was just one last thing to put into place for his long range plans. Then, and only then, would he be ready to face Kim Possible. The date of their eventual battle was coming even closer; two more days, and Zorpox would set the ball rolling.

And not even the great Kim Possible would foresee what was to come.

X X X X X X X X

Supper was over, and after the meal, the family had spent the night together playing their favorite board game. Kim was a little disappointed at first, since Ron often joined them, but soon she forgot about it, having just as much fun as her brothers. Rufus himself played, as well, taking Ron's usual place. The red head would hate to admit it, but the mole rat was a better player than Ron.

Kim worked with the little mole rat through the game, and between the two of them, they quickly won the first, and then second games. Even the twins, with their unique ability to work together, were having trouble keeping up with Kim and Rufus. The teen, of course, was reveling in the ability to beat her brothers, taking every opportunity she could to lord it over them. Even after they had resorted to cheating, they still didn't get a win, so they finally quit in disgust, letting a gleeful Kim score her third victory of the night.

As Kim stood and stretched after the game, she stepped across the floor, over to her brothers, and gave them a pat on the head. "Well, tweebs, looks like your twin powers failed you tonight."

"Hicka bicka boo?" Tim flopped back, exasperated.

"Who sha?" The other brother slumped down as well, groaning at the three consecutive losses. Neither of them knew what had gone wrong.

Kim, perhaps reading their thoughts, held her hand out flat, and within seconds, a small pink mole rat had clambered up and perched there, looking down at the twins. The teen chuckled. "Too bad you two forgot about the Rufus factor. Right?" The mole rat bobbed his little head, blowing a raspberry at the two kids.

The red head turned to her parents, giving them a smile, then declared that she was going to bed. Since she had school tomorrow and had to get up early, it was about time for her to turn in, and considering she still had to get ready for bed, she figured it was as good a time as any. Her parents nodded back, with the tweebs grunting up at her from the floor. Giving one last bright smile, she spun and started up the stairs, lifting Rufus to her face. "And as for you..." He looked at her quizzically.

She gave him a small, quick kiss on his head, and giggle a little as he turned bright red. She whispered softly to him. "Thanks for a nice night."

Still blushing, he gave a bashful, "Hnk, no problem. Fun!"

X X X X

After his daughter went up to bed, James sat down in front of the TV, intending to check the news. He actually hadn't been paying much attention to things the last couple of days, so he needed to get caught up. Most of the news was hardly interesting, but there were a few rocketry tidbits here and there, plus some things about electronics. He was just about to turn the TV off, when the newscaster focused on another story.

"And in recent news, the Middleton Hardware and Electric Company has recently been bought out by an unknown person. The company, which makes everything from generic lightbulbs to specialized appliances, has not been doing very well financially over the last few months. Some recent competition from a Lowerton company has nearly put MHEC out of business. The CEO could not be reached for comment, but it seems the new owner has made some substantial changes to the companies policy, and has even launched a new product. With us now is Summer Gale."

Dr Possible frowned, recognizing the name, after a few second, the video cut, and his frown turned into a glare. He remembered her now, the lady who had a used a weather generator and Wannaweep lake water to create mutant snowmen. He was surprised she still had a job. His hand drifted to the off button on his remote.

"Thank you, Tricia. Yes, here at the Middleton Hardware and Electric Company, a new product is being unveiled. Not really a new product, this simple item is supposed to revolutionize the market, but only time will tell. I have the product here, if you'll just pan the camera-"

James cut the TV off, shaking his head. He would never understand how someone as corrupt as Ms Gale could still be on the air. Then again, she hadn't really seemed too happy to be doing this story. He shrugged to himself and headed up to bed.

And people wondered why he hated show folk.

* * *

_**A/N** Well, this might be a good time to mention if you haven't figured it out, I am planning a sequel. Zorpox's plans here are a little bit more focused on long term, as opposed to this current story. That said, a few more things for his long term plan, and he'll be ready to match wits against Kim._


	17. Setting a Trap

_**A/N** A chapter or two more, and we'll see how well Zorpox has everything planned out._

_Thanks to Eddy13 for beta checking this story_

* * *

**Chapter 17: Setting a Trap**

(Monkey-Week 3)

Kim was out of bed, and on her way to school in just under thirty minutes. She had a busy day ahead of her; being the first of the week, she had a lot to take care of. That meant she had to get to school very early, and get as much as she could done in the time she had. The teen reached her school in record time; she had, in fact, managed to make it there too early-the school wasn't even open yet.

Fortunately, Vice Principle Barking was a man that lived by his schedule; he couldn't be rushed, but he was never late, either. By some mystical means, he always arrived exactly on time, not a minute early nor late. The red head thought back to how Ron had said he wished he could harness just a little of that magic force for his own gains. She chuckled lightly as she remembered how he had stalked the Vice Principle for days, even getting a key made so he could search the man's house for his 'mystical force'. All her friend had found was a one way ticket to detention.

Kim looked around, and realized that she couldn't see anyone nearby-was Barkin going to be late? She checked the time on her Kimmunicator, counting down to herself, smiling. Three. Two. One. The teen looked up, then took a step back, almost shocked. Barkin was standing at the doors unlocking them. She narrowed her eyes, frowning to herself, wondering where he had come from. Shrugging, she quickly zipped up past him with a short 'hi,' and went inside to work on her projects.

The teen checked everything over as well as she could, and within a half an hour, she had a group of hardworking students helping her keep track of the different things she needed to check on. She gave them all their tasks, and then let them work, focusing on what she needed to take care of herself. The teen worked intently until about twenty minutes before school started. She stood and stretched, getting ready to check on other work, when she felt something move in her pocket.

At first, she though about Rufus, but the mole rat was inside her right pocket, and she felt something in her left. As she reached in, she blinked, remembering. It was the bracelet that she was going to give to Monique; the peace offering that Kim hoped would get her friend talking to her again. The teen looked around, spotting another student that she trusted, and told him to take care of things while she was gone. With that, Kim left.

The red head made her way to her locker first, in case Monique had been waiting for an apology. Seeing that her friend wasn't there, Kim made her way down the halls, soon passing Ron's locker, and finally stopping at Monique's. The teen looked around, concerned, before hearing a grumble from behind. As she turned, spotting her friend, Kim gave a shy, sheepish smile. "H-Hi, Monique."

Her return glare made Kim sigh. "Look, I already said I'm sorry, it was an accident, you knew something like that could happen. Besides, I didn't destroy your kitchen, and your mom seemed sorta happy to have a reason to get some new pots and stuff, so it's good all around, right?"

"You think a quick little apology and joke is going to make up for what you put me through?"

Wordlessly, Kim held up the bracelet. Monique snatched it from her hands, looking it over, then casually slipped it on.

"Hmm, that's better. Apology accepted. Now, dish. What did you do over the rest of your weekend? And don't tell me it was 'no big.'"

Kim closed her mouth with a perturbed look, then finally started speaking. "Fine, it wasn't 'no big.' I tried to get mom to help me a little, and we tried to make some Mac and Cheese. It...didn't go so well. I decided that I'll just wait until Ron got back."

At those words, Monique smiled brightly. "Hallelujah, we're all going to live." She hesitated for a second. "You didn't burn your house down, did you?"

X X X X X X X X

Zorpox was awake and working nearly as early as Kim. He had two very important things to get done, so he wasn't wasting any time in his actions. The villain sat at his computer terminal, quickly booting it up, then tapped his chin a few times, considering. He put out a search algorithm, checking over for a specific item he needed; he then leaned back, waiting as it searched.

In the meantime, he called up all his programs he had designed, and compressed them down into a single file. He then took the small cable from his belt and attached it, downloading the file into the microcomputer in his belt. He wanted to have a backup of all of his designs, just in case. The small computer was easily able to hold the encrypted files.

Once finished, he looked over his list of plans, and his computer files, then quickly encrypted them as well, locking everything up tight and inaccessible. With a smirk, he ran his hands over the keyboard, knowing that not even Wade himself would be able to hack into those files-at least, not without months of work.

He tapped his keyboard a few times, then pulled up his search to see if he had gotten the results he needed. It had, and he chuckled a bit, noting that Hank Perkins had the item he needed, again. Zorpox tapped in a short, brief message to the other man, informing him that he had need of the item; once finished, he leaned back in his chair, giving a few seconds for though.

This part of his plan was very important, and this item would be important to his plan. He just hoped that Perkins would be able to provide the item by tomorrow, because after that, things might be beyond Zorpox's control.

After all of that was finished, the villain thought about the one other task he had to do this morning.

As he stood, Zorpox cocked his head to the side, wondering what Drakken was doing.

X X X X

A blue figure looked around, carefully, to ensure that there was no one else around-especially the other villain in the lair. He didn't want to be interrupted, and he really didn't want to be caught. Finally sure of his security and safety, he played his hand over the computer screen in front of him, testing his connections, before calling up a certain website. He sent off a single alert, a carefully worded message.

The villain closed the computer program, then made his way out of the main lab, back towards his room. On the bottom corner of the screen, a small pop up announced that the file had been sent and received. The program, after ensuring that the file had reached the Kim Possible website, deleted all evidence of what had happened.

X X X X X X X X

Kim made her way out of her third period class, then headed down to her locker, quickly opening the door. She started stuffing in things that she wasn't going to need, then grabbing other things that she did want, putting them into her backpack for later. She was just reaching to close the locker door, when she heard a quick beep, and the computer screen in her locker lit up. "Wade, what's the sitch?"

"Got a hit on the site. There's been an anonymous tip, a sighting of Shego. I'm checking it out right now, and I'll see what I can find."

The teen frowned. "You have to check on it?"

He nodded. "Yeah, it wasn't a location or anything, it was really vague. Just something about a woman matching her description in a resort town."

Kim frowned. "What, she thinks she can pretend to be on vacation, and we won't check on her?" The genius shrugged at her, and the red head just shook her head. "Regardless, I'm sure you'll figure out if it's her. It's not like you have a lot to go on, right?"

"Actually..." Wade smiled back. "In just the last half hour, I'm gotten eighteen hits of reported sightings. Most are just random stuff that doesn't mean anything, but this hit also said something about a deed, so I'm going to cross reference stuff, might get a hit. I figure the call came in from a secretary that noticed something out of the ordinary. I'll keep you in the loop."

"Thanks Wade." Kim nodded, then cut the connection, quickly making her way to her next class, before she was late.

She so didn't want another visit with 'Three Strikes' Barkin.

X X X X X X X X

"Dr Director?"

Betty Director was currently in GJ's main command center, going over some different files and information the agency had acquired, hoping to find some sort of information that could help her locate the mysterious person who seemed to be working with Drakken and Shego. She turned, facing the agent who had alerted her. "Yes, did you find something?"

"I am not sure." Du had been poring over the information longer than she had. His meeting with the man had given him a drive the Director hadn't seen in a long time. While she was still upset over what had happened, she was secretly pleased that the attack on Du had managed to wake him up; he seemed to working with much more energy and drive, more than she had seen in a long time. Maybe she should spring traps on her agents...

Shaking her head, she moved to look over Du's shoulder, trying to figure out what he had seen. She instantly realized what he had found, and let loose a devious smirk.

After GJ had learned that Hank Perkins had contact with the mysterious villain, they had gone about trying to locate him, in hopes that he could give them information on the man. Unfortunately, he had disappeared somewhere, and they were having no luck locating him. On the other hand, they had confiscated his supply warehouses, as well as gaining access to his computers and other software. They had even managed to hack his email accounts, where they had finally gotten their first clue about their mystery man.

The email was short and brief, just indicating what was needed, and that the villain had the money for the product. Perkins had responded back with a time, and the other man had indicated his approval. Now, as Du had been looking it over to see if he could figure anything else about the mystery man, the account had received a new email; and by all signs, if was from the same mysterious villain. The message even mentioned the incident at the warehouse in Florida.

"Hmm." The Director mused, reading over the email. "That fills in a couple of blanks. It wasn't random destruction, looks like Perkins tried to pull a double cross, and things went south for him."

Du nodded back, then tapped the screen, running his fingers over another section. "But I do not understand this part. He wants a book of charts on weather patterns? Do you think this is some sort of code?"

Betty was just as baffled. "Maybe, but I don't think so, it seems too direct. You've got a list of the items Perkins had up for sale, right? Was this one of the items?"

A quick search netted them results. Du looked back at the director. "Yes, Perkins was trying to sell a stolen copy of NASA weather patterns. It is the most comprehensive history of weather in the world, it is not something that you can just get anywhere." He frowned. "It is not worth much on the open market, though, so I am not sure why he stole it in the first place, or why this mysterious villain wants it."

The Director shook her head. "That's something we can work on figuring out later. Right now, we've got an opportunity we can't pass up. I want you to send an email back to this man, informing him we have the weather charts, and we will sell them. Give him this location..." She passed over a small note. "...then get a team together, and plan a trap, see if you can catch this guy." She moved over to another terminal, pulling up the information on the NASA charts. "I'm going to see what I can figure out here."

Du gave an affirmative, quickly typed the message and sent it, then left, getting his team ready. He set the meeting for the next day, assuring that he would have plenty of time to get things ready.

This villain wouldn't slip through his fingers again.

X X X X

Zorpox sat up at the loud beep, the noise rousing him from a light nap. He had been waiting quite a while after sending off the message; enough time that he had already fixed the henchmen their lunch, had some himself, and now came back to relax a little bit. He had been working practically non-stop for the last two weeks, and thought he need a little bit of down time.

Now completely focused and alert, the caped villain called the message up, reading it over. He mused to himself, reading things over, then frowned. Something didn't seem right. He looked over the wording more carefully, then smiled to himself widely. He chuckled and spoke to himself.

"Well, well, Will Du. Sneaky, aren't you? Too bad that Perkins has a slightly different writing style. But, if you're willing to set such an elaborate trap, who am I to disappoint?" The villain sent his reply.

_I'll be there._

X X X X X X X X

It was now early afternoon for Kim, and fortunately for her sanity, most of her difficult classes and busiest activities were behind her. Other than her brief apology to Monique, the red head hadn't had a second to herself, busy from one moment to the next. Now she was actually making her way to the a classroom to meet with the prom planning committee.

While the prom was still a few weeks away, it was time for Kim and her group to start getting things set for the dance, and get the ball rolling on the different things they would need. There was food and drink, the decorations, and of course, the music. The first two had been pretty much taken care of, the group that Kim was working with was quite effective. They had figured out what sorts of food and drinks they could have, that stayed within budget, and had planned out the decorations as well.

Kim herself had a large part in the planning of the decorations, her work on the different dances through the school year giving her a good ability to plan it all out, creating the best looking dance they could have. Balloons, streamers, different lights and other decorations, Kim was sure that everything would look perfect, and the committee had agreed; this meant the meeting today was really just a formality.

Except for the music. Kim grimaced, looking over the selection of music that the committee had been fighting over. Different rock bands, boy bands, the new-and-up-and-coming, plus the old-but-beloved, it was a nightmare for a person like Kim, who always desired everything to be perfect. After much conflict, she had finally caved in, getting Monique to help her, gathering a list that almost everyone agreed with.

The teen looked down the list, checking each song, with every committee member adding their input. Kim crossed off certain songs as they were voted down, other ones joined the list for the prom. The red head was really just going through the motions, letting them pick and choose as they will, when they reached a certain song. It was almost instantly voted down, with no one recognizing the artist. They all wanted well recognized, fun songs, or nice slow songs. Kim dropped her hand to slash through it, as well, when she paused suddenly.

Her eyes were drawn to the title, and there was an almost unnatural pause as she read it over. "Could It Be." The teen couldn't say why the song caught her eye, what it was that drew her, but she stopped, her pen poised and ready to cross it off.

"Kim? Kim, are you okay?" Tara looked at her friend in concern, then back at the song. The blond really hadn't cared about the song one way or the other, and she had figured that Kim wasn't going to either.

The red head finally looked up. "Hmm? Sorry, just thinking. Why don't we keep this song. I mean, it's the only one by this lady, who knows-it might be an important song for some couple some day. We've got plenty of songs, it's not like one more is going to totally ruin the night."

Tara shrugged back. "Okay Kim, it's your call. Actually, I think it sounds like a nice song too."

One of the other committee members looked over, smirking a bit. "Oooh, thinking of dancing with Josh, are you?"

The blond looked back and shook her head. "No, not really. We broke up last night. Well, not broke up, we're just not dating anymore." At a look from the other girls, she shrugged. "He's a great guy, but I don't know, not my type of guy." She smirked a little. "I guess I'm in the market, know anyone badical I can take to the dance?"

Kim smiled. "I'm sure you'll find someone, Tara, the dance is still weeks away. Plenty of time to find someone." She turned back to the paper, and circled the song to add to the list. "If no one objects, I'll add this song, too." The others nodded their consent, and Kim continued down the list, keeping their meeting running.

X X X X X X X X

After sending the message off to the GJ lackwits, Zorpox realized that he now had a unique problem. It was unlikely that Global Justice would have the charts that he needed, and they had probably even confiscated them from Perkin's storehouse. He was now without a key aspect of his plan, and left with no way of obtaining it. The charts themselves had been unique; only a handful of copies had been made, and most were kept quite securely and used often. While it would be possible to steal the charts, it was very unlikely he would be able to do so without being noticed, and the risk of recognition was too great.

Sighing, the villain leaned back in his chair, thinking. He could always wait to steal it until later, when keeping his identity secret wasn't as important-but by then, GJ would know of his immanent attack, and plan accordingly, keeping the charts safe under lock and key. There was, as well, the matter of how Global Justice was attempting to foil his plan. He couldn't allow that-there must be a recognition that he was better than that flawed agency.

At this realization, Zorpox sat up, smiling. It was perfect. He had never considered it before, but if he did follow through with his plans, performed all his actions, his plan, he would come into direct conflict with Global Justice. While the agency was no where near as effective as Kim was, they were still quite successful in their actions-and if they brought their entire might to bear on him, even he would have difficulty.

He thought back to his plan for tomorrow, meeting the GJ agents, springing their trap, and humiliating them, defeating them. While he didn't have time to do anymore to that meddlesome agency, there would be opportunities in the future. Global Justice would be shown the error of their ways. The villain chuckled lightly. He might not even stop at just that one agency...

X X X X X X X X

Kim walked into cheer practice feeling pretty good about what she had gotten accomplished throughout the day. Every activity she had taken throughout the day had been done quickly and efficiently, and everything was on track. Considering the teen's focus on being in control of things, it made her feel like she had a very productive day. Of course, it was as she walked into the gym for her cheer practice that her day reached its peak, and she realized why the day had felt so perfect.

Bonnie had been home sick.

The red head had felt a bit guilty at first, since she didn't really wish that Bonnie was sick. At the same time, though, she was ecstatic that she had a day free from her rival; this quickly overrode any feelings of guilt. Kim walked in to the gym, noting the team was all standing together, ready, so she gave a wave, then went to get their CD player. She returned in a few seconds, propping it up to the bleachers, and whisked Rufus out of her pocket.

The mole rat chittered at her, happily, then sat with his little paws on the buttons, ready for her cue. Kim motioned, and he pressed the button with a 'click,' the music playing loudly. The cheer squad quickly took their positions, and started running through their actions, performing and perfecting their cheers. Kim led some of the more athletic girls in a number of poses, flips and handsprings, running through the sequences time and again until they were perfect. After an hour of practice, all the girls were ready for a break, Kim included, so they finished up their practice, gathering their gear and changing their outfits before heading home.

After changing clothes herself, Kim came out of the dressing room, scooping Rufus up and placing him on her shoulder. The little mole rat was still humming some of the music to himself, and smiled as she returned the CD player, then started for home. After she reached the sidewalk, she pulled Rufus off her shoulder, and started rubbing him lightly. He moaned and rolled over, sighting contently as she scratched his tummy.

Kim grinned to herself. While she was still occasionally weirded out by Rufus'...well, naked-ness, he was extremely handy, both at school and on her missions. More than that, though, he was a great friend to both Kim and Ron, and she always appreciated his help. She cooed down at him. "That's a good little naked mole rat. You've been so helpful the last few days, Rufus, in school and with cooking." She felt a shiver run through his body at 'cooking,' but chose to ignore it. "Maybe _I_ should keep you instead of Ron."

The mole rat's eyes snapped open wide and he stared at her, before Kim giggled and smiled. Realizing she wasn't serious, he 'humphed' at her, rolling back on to his stomach, facing away. She rubbed behind his ears, and he practically purred. "Nah, I couldn't do that to Ron." She started to say more, when there was a beeping from her pocket. As Kim moved her hand, the mole rat sat up, growling to himself, irritated. Didn't Wade know he was ruining his mole rat massage?

As the teen pulled her Kimmunicator out, she gave Rufus an apologetic smile, then quickly flipped the device on, Wade appearing on screen. "Okay, Wade, talk to me, you have something on Shego?"

The super genius opened his mouth to reply, only to get a screen full of angry, chittering mole rat. Kim plucked him off the Kimmunicator, then slipped him into her pocket. Wade looked at her, confused.

"What's with Rufus?"

She chuckled a bit. "You interrupted his massage time. He'll be fine when I get home and get him some cheese." The small squeak of 'cheese' from Kim's pocket wasn't missed by either Wade or Kim. "Okay, Wade, sitch me."

He nodded back, then started talking, pulling up different files and sending them across the Kimmunicator screen. "I checked out that anonymous tip that we got, and I finally got a hit. I crossed referenced the tip with any sightings of dark haired women, factoring in pale skin that looks faintly green, and got a hit here, at this tropical island." An aerial photo showed the location. "I was able to get a single shot from a camera. I think you'll want to see this."

As the picture flowed across the screen, Kim looked at it, squinting a bit as she looked at the small screen. She watched as Wade selected the picture, then enlarged a portion, and soon Kim was able to make out her green foe. "It is Shego! Good work, Wade, now we know where we can find her." She paused a second. "Can you back this photo out for a second, I thought I saw something." He nodded, and let the rest of the picture show.

Kim let her eyes wander over the image, before she blinked, focusing on something. "Wade, right there, what's that? Top right corner, fifth person down from that news stand." He enlarged the picture, then shook his head.

"I'm not seeing it, Kim, I don't recognize this guy."

The red head growled. "That's because you've never met him in person. Edit out that large hat, and lighten the shade on his skin a bit." As the edits took place, Kim narrowed her eyes. "Will Du."

"Good eye you got there, Kim." The super genius smiled, impressed.

"He's trying to get in on my mission. I can't believe he thinks he can just come in take this from me, get the credit."

Wade blinked, then frowned for a second. "Wait a minute, he's not really focused on Shego, is he?" He pulled the footage back out, then ran a directional analysis, noting that the undercover GJ agent wasn't focused towards Shego, but in a different direction. "What's he looking at...?" As Wade plotted things, he finally gave a exclamation of surprise. "Well, look at this, Kim, he seems to be focused on someone else entirely. This man here, I think."

The footage was again moved, and soon centered on another person in the crowd. As the video zoomed in, Wade shook his head. "I've never seen this guy before, and a search through my databanks isn't getting any results, either. He's not a villain, that's for sure, and he isn't anyone you've helped, or anyone associated with GJ."

The red head frowned again. "Well, keep working on it, it might be important. Anyway, was that it?"

He turned his attention back to his screens, and gave a small shake of his head. "No, there was something else. This was actually what tipped me off in the first place, after I got that random anonymous message." He pulled up another file, shooting a small piece of paper across her screen. "It's a deed to a small warehouse in the area. Check the name on it."

Kim read it off. "Shego. Gee, how dumb can you be? She does all this planning but leaves her name out like this? Either she's been taking lessons from Drakken, or it's a trap." She looked at her friend. "Set me up a ride, Wade, and I'll check it out."

He nodded. "I'll get it set for you, but it'll have to be tomorrow-I already checked, and most of your rides are booked tonight."

The red head shook her head, then shrugged. "I guess it'll hold, right? You said that she probably won't be ready for a while anyway. This will give me a chance to okay everything with Barkin." She mulled it over. "A few hours there, a couple back, a little time for the fight...Hmm, think I'll be back by noon?"

Her friend nodded. "Baring anything unforseen, yeah, that should work. I'll get to work on things on my end, while you take of whatever you need to. Talk to you tomorrow."

She smiled back. "All right, 'night Wade." She watched him cut the call, then quickly started punching something else into her Kimmunicator, contacting her teachers for the next day. Fortunately...or unfortunately, that pretty much consisted of Barkin.

X X X X X X X X

Two days. In just two days, his plan would either have been launched successfully, or failed catastrophically. Laughing darkly, Zorpox leaned back in his chair. When it came down to it, however, either option would serve his needs; in point of fact, things were already rolling forward. He looked over his true plan one last time, committing it to memory, then destroying all trace of it, shredding the software, and running an overwrite program over the file to ensure it's complete erasure. Now, even if Wade was able to hack into his computer programs, get into his files, he would not have the plan.

Looking at the time, Zorpox realized it was quite early still, and considered making a walk around the lair, but knew there was no need. He quickly prepared himself for bed, laying down despite the early time. He was going to be very busy over the next two days, and he wanted to be sure he was well rested for whatever happened.

Especially if everything went according to plan.

X X X X

Drakken sat in his room, frowning to himself. He hadn't seen Zorpox all day; the other villain hadn't even bothered to check up on the satellites being made. Shrugging, the blue villain wondered if maybe he was under the weather. Should he bring the caped villain some chicken soup?

The mad doctor flinched as he realized that he was again doing what Zorpox had said not to do, acting too soft. He gave a frown, trying to take an indifferent attitude. If the other villain really needed him, he would say so.

Shrugging, Drakken turned back to his project. He placed a few more resistors in place, toggled some different switches and things, then finally pulled the last piece he needed; a small focusing crystal that he placed in the circuitry near the end nozzle of the device. The blue villain pressed a button on the device, watching as a green, focused blast of energy came out the end of his device.

A miniature version created using his plasma launcher designs, this device was fully functional, and now that Drakken knew that, he could easily work on a much bigger reproduction. He placed his hands under the base, then lifted it up, placing it up on a shelf with his other miniature super weapons. Shaking his head, he went back to sit down.

He didn't understand it. All of his inventions, his devices worked in their smaller scale, but as soon as he started to enlarge things, make it actually threatening and designed to take over the world, things started to go wrong. Idly, the villain looked back at his wall, and the line of doomsday weapons. Maybe in the future, he needed to start on a much smaller...or miniature scale.

X X X X X X X X

By the time Kim made it home after cheer practice, it was time for supper, and the teen joined her family in eating together. Once the meal was finished, she helped her mom wash the dishes; they usually used their dishwasher, but they were out of the soap they normally used. Secretly Kim figured that it was just a way for her mom to get one of her children cornered so they could talk.

As Kim dried the plates her mom was handing to her, she kept sneaking glances over at the adult. Finally Ann spoke. "We were talking the other night about school, before I got called in on that emergency, so I was wondering if you had anything else you wanted to talk about. I know that part of what you were nervous about was the cooking thing, right?"

The teenage nodded back, smiling guiltily. "Yeah, I was just afraid you were going to start asking me questions, and I really didn't want to talk about that. I hate it that I can't cook."

Ann smiled. "Now Kimmie, remember, it's not that you can't cook, but that it's hard for you. You can do anything you put your mind to, it just might take more practice, more hard work to succeed."

Her daughter nodded back. "Yeah, I know, like you said, it's just like math or science, sometimes someone else can be better. As for everything else school related, everything is fine. I'm on top of all my work, even ahead in a few classes."

The adult gave a small, mischievous grin. "Enough ahead that you put off any work for tonight?"

Kim sent her mom a sidelong glance. "What are you thinking?"

Ann shrugged back. "Well, it's been a while since we've had some mother/daughter time, but you don't have any schoolwork, or missions, and I'm completely off the clock tonight, I figured we could spend some time together, watch a movie or something."

As she dried the last dish, Kim smirked back. "Sounds like fun."

X X X X

A few hours later, Kim made her way up to her room, chuckling quietly to herself. She had spent the evening together with her mom, and after they had watched the movie, they had played a couple of board games, sharing stories back and forth, Ann about work and funny things Kim's father had done, Kim sharing things about school and Ron. The teen's mother had told a funny story about James set not long after their marriage, involving a science fiction convention, show props, three cans of blue body paint, and a dozen rabid fangirls. Ann said she had been scrubbing the paint off him for weeks.

Still smiling, she got dressed for bed, quickly slipping under the covers. She barely had enough time to realize she was exhausted after her long day, before falling asleep. As she drifted off, rolling on her side, she wondered just how many more days until Ron was back.

* * *

_**A/N** So, Du's got a trap planned for Zorpox, and Kim's expecting Ron back any day. How many more days_ is_ it until he gets back?_


	18. Springing a Trap

_**A/N** A little bit more action in this chapter, kind of a teaser of what you'll see in the next couple when Zorpox springs his plan._

_Thanks to Eddy13 for beta reading._

* * *

**Chapter 18: Springing a Trap**

_**(Tuesday-Week 3)**_

Zorpox woke up excited, knowing that today was the final day before his plan was put into action. He felt like a kid on Christmas Eve, a boy told that he couldn't open his presents until the next day, barely able to keep himself from his desires. This morning, unlike so many others he had spent in Drakken's lair, he took the time to stand and stretch, working his body through a number of different poses. While Ron may have been a slacker, he, and Zorpox by extension, had some skill in Tai Shing Pek War. The villain wanted to be a little more familiar with those skills, in the event he would need to defend himself.

Considering his plans, it was quite likely.

Spending nearly two hours working on these skill was actually quite tiring, but extremely useful for the caped villain. Once finished, he finally relaxed, confident that he would easily be able to best any henchmen who dared to challenge him. Kim herself, however, might be a different story.

Shrugging as he stood, the villain looked over at the clock in his room, noting the time. He narrowed his eyes, as he realized that he had just enough time to get ready before he had his visit with GJ, or as they had replied, 'Hank Perkins.' He stood, considering using his holographic cloaking technology, but realized that it could be unreliable; he didn't want any one of the GJ agents to get a picture of his face and features. He decided to grab a large cloak, slipping it over his body, using it to disguise himself. He turned, his eyes staring out from under the shadowed hood.

Perfect.

X X X X X X X X

"Kimmie, where are you off to this morning?"

Kim paused at her mother's words, looking over at the adult; her mom looked back curiously. James lowered his newspaper, focusing as well, finally seeing that Kim wasn't wearing her normal school clothes. The red head gave a small shrug.

"Mission, Shego's got something planned, and I'm going to go check on things. Wade's set me up a ride, so I'll go and see if I can catch her. I should be back by lunch time, I've already got the go ahead from Mr Barkin. I'm ahead in my classes, so I'm won't miss anything."

After the explanation, both adults smiled and wished her well. "All right, Kimmie-cub, but you be careful, you know how Drew can be with all those wacky schemes of his."

She shook her head. "Actually, it's just Shego this time. Drakken's not really doing anything as far as Wade and I can tell, and Shego's the one making the scheme and plan."

Ann frowned, seeming to realize that this wasn't a normal mission. "Are you going to be all right without Ron?" Seeing her daughter's insulted look, she continued anyway. "You know how he's always there to watch your back, and you said before that this plan seemed a little different than any others. Do you think you can handle this?"

Kim waved it off. "Sure, it's no big. Ron's usually the distraction, but since it'll just be Shego and me, there shouldn't be anything complicated going on. It'll be a breeze." She looked past her mom for a second, focusing on the clock, then widened her eyes. "Oops, got to go, Wade's ride will be here any moment. Love you guys." With that, she was out the door.

James and Ann shared a look, before Kim's mother sighed. "Well, Wade's keeping an eye on her, and she knows what she'd doing, so this shouldn't be any big deal." She turned back around, looking at her dishes, before whispering almost silently. "...then why do I feel like something bad is going to happen sometime soon?"

X X X X X X X X

Zorpox found himself standing outside another warehouse in Florida, one that was being used for storing different supplies that were ready to be shipped. It was away from the central area of the dock, however, and would be perfect for his meeting. This building was nearly identical to the one he had demolished just a few days ago; idly, he wondered if he was going to have to demolish this building as well...

As the cloaked villain walked into the warehouse, he looked around, smiling to himself, studying the layout of the building. He placed a fingertip down against his belt, depressing a small button, causing interference for all radio systems in the area, rendering them dead. Finally he turned his attention back forward, watching as someone walked out of the shadows. Zorpox spoke slowly. "You are not Hank Perkins."

The Global Justice agent smirked, motioning, and nearly two dozen agents revealed themselves around the room. Some were in the catwalks, others repelled down from the ceiling, and a few approached from ground level. The villain gave a low chuckle. "All this, for me? I'm touched, I didn't realize Du held me in such high regard."

"Surrender, villain, we have you outnumbered, outgunned, and all the exits are blocked off. There's no way you can escape."

As the other man spoke, Zorpox let his gaze roam over the room, cataloging everything, noting the different things in the environment he would be able to use against the GJ agents. At the same time, he replied to the unfamiliar agent. "Surrender? Please, is that the best line you GJ lackwits can come up with? That's the same thing Du said. How about 'give up'? 'Capitulate'? 'Prostate yourself before my mighty power'?" He chuckled. "I kind of like that one, myself." He raised his hands, the pointed tips of his gloves shining in the light. Under the hood, his smile didn't reach his eyes.

The lead agent motioned, and two men moved up to the side, near Zorpox, ready to reach for his hands. Before they had a chance to move, the cloaked villain slipped his hands down into his pocket, pulling out his laser weapon. Stepping forward with his left foot, he fired a single shot off, then lowered his weapon, standing posed and waiting.

As the laser blast went over his head, the lead GJ agent watched it, noting it hitting a bar behind him, on one of the catwalks. The bar was placed in front of a dozen spools of wire, each eight foot tall. There was a creaking of metal, as the bar split and started to separate, but the spools didn't move. He frowned to himself, then smirked, realizing that the villain must have missed his target. He turned back around, and took a step towards the villain. That's when Du's entire trap fell apart.

The metal bar split down the center, one side dropping to the catwalk, the other side swinging down, the end impacting against a parked forklift. There was a loud hum as the forklift started up, then lurched across the floor, heading directly for a number of pillars on the ground supporting the upper catwalk. A crunching, grinding sound echoed in the warehouse, three loud sounds as the forklift knocked out each pillar.

As the upper catwalk tilted, the spools of wire, no longer confined by the bar, started rolling. Two of the spools went rolling across the catwalks running the length of the warehouse, causing the agents above to dive off to the floor. Two of them weren't fast enough, and the spools hit then, knocking them down and out.

Meanwhile, as the catwalk at the back of the room collapsed, eight spools hit the floor and started rolling right into the midst of the agents surrounding Zorpox. The GJ agents scattered, trying to avoid the giant things rolling at them. The blond villain just held his pose, watching as the spools went past him, hitting a number of different agents, the men dropping to the floor, unconscious.

One of the giant sections of rolling wire careened into a large stack of barrels. The impact smashed the stack, causing the barrels to collapse and spread across the floor. The round containers traveled out like a tidal wave, smashing everything they came into contact with, taking out a number of other agents. Zorpox, again, was unaffected, as the barrels had dispersed by the time they reached him, the wide open floor allowing the barrels to glide past him easily.

Some of the contains split open, dumping slick chemicals on the floor, tripping up the GJ agents. Many of the men tried to claw their way back up to their feet, but slipped in the liquids, coating themselves with the lubricant. One agent lost his footing, but came down on his taser wrist watch, and the weapon sparked open, sending a charge into the fluid, shocking and disabling the nearby agents.

Zorpox smirked, looking at the last agent standing, the leader in front of him. The man had an incredulous look on his face, but the presence of mind to pull his own laser sidearm, aiming it at the villain. "D-Don't move."

The villain chuckled. "I think it's too late for that." He slipped his hand inside his cloak, quickly bringing his hand back up. The GJ agent fired at Zorpox, but his attack never connected. The villain raised his hand, a small compact mirror held tightly in his fist. The laser blast hit the mirror and bounced back at the man who had fired, the laser hitting him in the shoulder, spinning him around and dropping him painfully to the floor.

As he crossed the floor, his pace almost sedate, the villain looked around. "Tsk, tsk, look at the mess you made." He hummed to himself. "You GJ agents should know that you're goal isn't to destroy everything you touch."

Zorpox bent over the disable agent, grabbing his collar, and pulling him up, until they were nearly nose to nose, the villain's face hidden in the shadows of his cloak. "I've got a message for your boss."

X X X X

Du spoke into his microphone again, then shook his head, motioned to the other agents nearby. "I am still getting nothing but static." The GJ agent had been trying to get communications working, unsure if there was a fault in the radio systems, or if something else was going on. After five minutes of silence, he decided to call it. "Let's go."

The top agent made his way to the main doors of the building, six agents flanking him. He quickly pushed through, realizing they were blocked some how, and wouldn't budge. He again signaled the other agents, and they all put their shoulders against the door, then pushed, finally breaking through. What they found inside cause them all to stop.

It looked like a disaster area. The place was filled with wires, chemicals across the floor, metal beams, even sections of catwalks, and the bodies of almost two dozen disabled agents. The men with Du quickly spread out, checking everyone out. They soon realized that nearly all the agents were unconscious, with a few starting to wake up. Du ignore them all for the moment, instead looking around, trying to spot the villain they had tried to capture. He finally went down to one knee, next to the only conscious agent, the man who had led the squad. "What happened here?"

The agent rubbed his throat, looking at Du, he shook his head. "He knew, somehow, that this was a trap, he was ready, we didn't stand a chance. I-I just don't understand what happened" He shook his head to try and clear his thoughts, then looked around, back towards the rear exit. "Did he get away?"

Agent Du instantly stood, putting a call out with his radio. "Team Gamma, are you there? Gamma, confirm status." He met the other agent's eyes, pulling him to his feet, and they both took off for the rear exit, and the team guarding it. They burst through the doors, stopping stock still as they saw all four agents, their weapons raised. The man in charge of the squad frowned.

"Du? What are you doing here, I thought you were on your way back to the HQ."

The top agent shook his head, frowning. "Negative, I have been inspecting things inside. Explain."

Du watched as the four agents looked at each other, before staring at him closely. The leader spoke again. "You just came out the doors almost two minutes ago. I was surprised you could make it all the way back around again, and come through those doors."

Will cursed, looking over at the agent next to him, as he pulled out his communication device, and put in a call to the Director. She appeared on screen, and he gulped to himself, hating to report a failure. "He got away."

The director wore a very dangerous look, narrowing her good eye. "You mean to tell me he escaped from nearly forty agents?"

Du nodded, almost silently. "He managed to disable communications somehow, we didn't know what was going on in the building. The villain disabled all of the agents inside, then escaped out the back door, using some sort of disguise. The agents covering the rear exit thought that I was leaving, and let him go."

The Director widened her eye slightly. "He's smarter than I thought, then. We've got to find out who he is, and see what he's planning. This could potentially be disastrous." She mulled it over. "All right, bring everyone in for debriefing, we'll look this information over, and see if we can figure out his next move. Regardless, he doesn't have those NASA Charts."

Through the discussion, the agent next to Du had been waiting his opportunity, he finally spoke up. "Director, Agent Du, he gave me a message to pass on." Du turned, and Dr Director focused on him as well. "He said to tell Agent Du 'Nice try, but I'm smarter than that.'" The agent seemed to hesitate. "His message for you, Dr Director, was a little more ominous. He said, 'Tell your Director not to interfere with things that don't concern her. By this time tomorrow, everything will be over, one way or another.'"

Will Du shook his head. "I don't like the sound of that, Director."

Betty Director shook her head. "Neither do I, but we've still got to figure out his next more. Bring everyone in, and we'll see what we can figure out." She cut the channel, and Du nodded, turning to gather the other agents.

X X X X

Zorpox grinned to himself. How lucky can you get? He hadn't expected everything to chain together like they had-it had really been a bonus. He had more or less hoped that he would be able to use the different things in the warehouse to his advantage, but he never would have expected them to balloon into such an effective weapon. He had actually been planning to shoot out the pillars to the catwalk himself, and had even been considering some of the piping and electrical systems in the building-but the way everything had pulled together? Even he was starting to think that he was infallible.

The villain shook himself, then frowned. No, he wasn't invincible, or infallible. He had already made a number of mistakes, and he was sure to make more-the trick was to learn from what he did wrong, anticipate success, but plan for failure. With Kim involved, there were sure to be many unforeseen consequences, and he would have to figure out the best way to deal with those problems. He had to make sure he didn't fall into the same pitfalls as the other villains.

He was Zorpox the Conqueror, after all, and he would get what he desired.

X X X X X X X X

Shego walked down the sidewalk, a towel wrapped over her shoulders. She was making her way back to her hotel, and had decided to take a scenic route, not realizing how out of the way it really was. She found herself near the edge of the warehouse and docks section of the resort town. She walked past them, slowly, she couldn't help but feel a little uneasy, like she was being watched. Her eyes narrowed as she heard a voice from behind.

"Clear sky today, isn't it? Better enjoy your last day in the sun, Shego, I doubt you'll get much tanning time in prison."

Shego turned and faced Kim. She gave a half growl, half sigh as she looked at her teen nemesis. While she was upset that the teen had shown up on her vacation time, she realized that she was going to enjoy this more than anything else she'd done the entire trip. She looked Kim up and down, then got in a fighting stance. "So, cupcake, where's you sidekick? Did the lapdog get lost and forget his way home?" She saw no reason to tell Kim about Zorpox.

The redhead snarled back. "He's busy, unlike you. What, you think I wouldn't find out about your little plan?"

Even though she had no idea what Kim was talking about, she hated it when the teen took that superior tone. Since Kim would never believe that Shego didn't know what was going on, the villainess decided to play along. "Oh, my plan, huh? Don't worry, Princess, I figured you'd know I had a plan." She paused, and grinned. "Didn't know I'd have to explain it, though."

As Kim attacked, she continued talking. "Oh, no, I've already got it all figured out-well, mostly." She hesitated, and went flipping backwards as the villainess tried to combat her. "You set all this up to keep me busy, looking after all the other villains instead of you-I just don't get why you used your name on the deed instead of someone elses-it's a dead give away." She smirked at Shego. "You're getting sloppy, Shego. Taking lessons from Drakken?"

She snarled back, attacking rapidly. "Maybe it was all a trap, princess..." Idly, she wondered if the trap was for Kim...or herself. "...or maybe I just wanted to see how obvious I would have to be to get your attention. If this hadn't worked, I'd have probably had to stop by your house." She smirked. "I know it's hard, pumpkin, but try and keep up."

Kim reacted in anger, lashing out rapidly. Unfortunately for Shego, one of the attacks slipped under her defenses, catching her a glancing blow across the jaw; it snapped her mouth shut. "Definitely taking lessons from Drakken-yapping more than fighting." Kim punctuated the words with a kick that launched Shego backwards; fortunately for the villainess, she was able to go back into a one handed handspring that eventually landed her on her feet. She rubbed her jaw.

Shego gave up on snappy comebacks, instead opting to charge again, glowing hands raised. Kim sidestepped, and the older women slipped, eventually crashing into the thin metal of the nearby warehouse. With her glowpower keyed up, the villainess plowed through the wall, surprisingly finding herself in a large open building. As Kim came in after her, Shego turned.

"Alright, Princess, bring it."

The red head smirked. "I thought that was my line." She took three running steps inward, then jumped sideways, placing her foot on a nearby box. As the villainess made a half turn toward her foe, Kim kicked outward and upward, to a stack of boxes almost eight feet high. She again planted, then launched herself downward on the villainess, coming in from above.

Shego couldn't react quickly enough, instead going down under the attack. Reflexes kicked in, and she rolled, trying to pin Kim underneath her. The teen recognized the move, instead twisting sideways so that they both ended up on their sides facing each other. Kim knew that it was dangerous to fight the villainess in such close quarters, due to the claws, so the heroine placed her feet against Shego and kicked out-they both went sliding in different directions.

Both Kim and Shego got to their feet, facing off. Kim took a quick breather to look around, and realized that she recognized some of the boxes. "See, these are the stolen supplies-I knew you had them stashed here somewhere. I've caught you red handed, give up, Shego."

"Yeah, surrender's never really been my style, pumpkin...never thought that falsely accusing someone would have been yours. None of this is mine, and even if it was, you can't pin any of it on me-so maybe all this stuff is stolen-I'll tell you what-you can have it." Shego let her hands darken, before crossing her arms. Kim was surprised, and dropped her own arms as well.

"You're not going to keep fighting?" Kim just stared.

The villainess shrugged back. "I figure why bother-it's all circumstantial-call the police, even GJ-none of them can pin this on me. Besides, you know the real reason I like this little resort? No extradition treaty. I'm safe here as long as I stay, and I'm willing to give this all to you, just like that."

Kim blinked, completely confused. "But...but what about the plan, taking over the world, I thought that was your thing."

The villainess laughed. "My thing? Poor, niave Kimmie-kins, I don't care about taking over the world. Never have-I always figure it for a guy's thing. I just like destroying stuff." She raised her left hand, letting a soft glow fill the room. "And fighting you." Shego turned her back, strolling out sedately. "I'll admit, for all you goody-goodyness, you really keep my on my game."

After the villainess had left, Kim just shook her head, putting in a call to Wade, then explaining what had happened. "I'm not sure I understand this, Wade, was this whole thing about her just fighting me? Proving to Drakken that she could come up with a plan and stuff?"

He shook his head back. "I don't know, but that seems to be the only thing that makes sense. I mean, all those boxes of supplies are here, so it's not like she was actually making all those satellites and stuff. I guess it was all just a ploy to play you or something." He reached out off screen, and was soon sucking on a slurpster. "I guess she's foiled, then, and it's not really like you can take her to prison. You'll just have to let it go."

The red head growled, frustrated.

X X X X X X X X

The caped villain growled, frustrated. He had managed to hack into GJ's computer systems, and was attempting to locate the NASA charts that they had confiscated from Hank Perkin's storage area. Unfortunately, according to everything he could learn, the files were kept in the headquarters itself, in a special vault. In other words, he would be unable to steal the plans without either a lengthy stealth mission, or a full out frontal assault. Either way, the plans were outside of his reach for the time being.

Zorpox mused to himself, tapping a small pencil on his table. He was currently in his room, at his computer terminal, trying to decide what to do. With only two days left in his current time table, he would be forced to put the GJ attack off until later; stealing the plans would take up too much of his time.

Meanwhile, he had to get everything ready. Tomorrow he would spring his big trap; now to put everything in place. First he turned back to his computer, calling up the connection he had made with Bueno Nacho Headquarters through the resort. He quickly rooted through his other files, finding the haggis recipe that he had stolen from Duff Killigan, then uploaded the file. He smirked to himself, then tapped the keyboard a few times.

Next, he pulled up Frugal Lucre's method of hacking in to Smarty Mart's systems. He used the backdoor program, and was soon able to make adjustments to the large supply store. The caped villain only made a few small changes here, a few updates to the list of supplies that the super store chain was to send to each Bueno Nacho.

Smiling gleefully, Zorpox looked over his changes, saving them, knowing that his plan was now in place. All that was left was two small details. He reached a hand upwards, tracing a finger along the bottom of the headband restricting his actions. Drakken and Shego were about to find out just how dangerous he could be.

The caped villain stood abruptly, his cape twisting around him. He spun and moved towards the door, passing through it, then making his was towards his lab. All that was left now was the wait for Shego's return.

His trap was set.

X X X X X X X X

Kim made it back to the school a little ahead of schedule; fortunately, she was able to use the extra time to finish up a few of her assignments. Her next few class hours passed just as quickly, and soon school was almost over. She had managed to get all the other cheerleaders free from their schoolwork, and Kim took the last thirty minutes of school to run them through a few more drills, practicing their skills and getting Bonnie caught up on their cheers. The red head's rival was still feeling a little under the weather, so while she was even more snarky that usual, she wasn't really up to saying much, and instead just wore a sour look for the entire practice.

As the practice ended, Kim waved goodbye to her friends, passed a half sneer off at Bonnie, then headed towards the gym doors. As she was walking out, she was practically ambushed by Monique.

"Got any plans for tonight, girl?"

"Well, no..."

"Great, we'll have a girls night out."

Kim thought a girls night out sounded like fun, and it would keep her mind off of Ron. She almost changed her mind when Monique grabbed Kim's arm and nearly pulled it off as she dragged Kim through the school. They went around the corner into D-hall, and nearly collided with a figure coming their way. Both teens stopped when their realized that it was Felix.

He smiled up at them from his wheelchair. "Kim, Monique, you two look like you're in a hurry." He smirked slightly. "Well, Monique looks like she's in a hurry-I guess you're just along for the ride." Kim paused, and felt something moving inside her pocket, before a small, pink head poked it's way out. She looked down at Rufus, and realized that the mole rat had heard Felix's voice; she watched him scamper out of the pocket, them jump onto his chair. Her gaze drifted back towards Monique.

The red head finally managed to pry her arm away from her friend. "No, I want to go...I think...since Ron's out of town, we thought we go and hang out, a girls night out-you know, without Ron freaking about it." She looked at Rufus, and suddenly realized the mole rat probably wouldn't want to go along.

Fortunately, Felix was as quick as ever. "Well, if you two ladies are going to be busy, do you want me to watch Rufus tonight? I could sure use another hand for Zombie Mayhem-preferably one who doesn't always die like Ron does..." He winked at the little mole rat.

Kim hesitated at first, she was the one watching Rufus while Ron was away, after all. Of course, there had been more than one mission that Ron had left his little buddy behind in Felix's safe care-generally any mission that involved cats. Rufus, sensing she was torn, looked up at her, giving her his best Mole Rat-Puppy-Dog pout. "Please, oh, please?" He clasped his little paws together, begging her. The teen rolled her eyes.

"All right, fine, but you boys behave." Rufus gave a little cheer, quickly jumping back to Kim's leg, then climbing up until he stood on her shoulder. He gave her a quick mole-rat sized hug, then dashed back down and over to Felix's wheelchair. Kim gave a little wave as the two left, then turned back to Monique. Her friend was looking at her with a small grin.

Kim eyed her. "What?"

"'You boys behave.'" Monique mimicked. "Come on, Kim, you sound like their mother." The red head gave her a warning glance, but she continued anyway. "And when Rufus gave you that hug..." She laughed. "I'm surprised you let him go."

The teen crossed her arms. "I'm supposed to be watching Rufus for Ron, that means I need to take care of him."

Monique scoffed. "Oh, sure, I agree entirely, but it's not like they can't handle themselves. You've almost got a sort of big sister thing going on here, don't you?"

The redhead blinked, wondering where Monique was going with this. "I am a big sister, to the tweebs at least. What does that have to do with anything?"

Her friend smirked. "I'm not just talking about the tweebs. Your sorta feel the same way about Ron, don't you? Rufus, too."

"Well, yeah." Kim shrugged. "I mean, we've been friends since we were in preschool. He's practically family. What's so funny about that?"

Monique spoke quietly, almost to herself. "Actually it's not funny...you two are just so delusional."

"What?" Kim frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Her friend finally seemed to refocus on Kim, then shook her head. "Nothing, just thinking out loud, about...something...else." Seeing Kim still suspicious, Monique grabbed her arm again. "Don't worry about it, I'm done teasing. Lets go see what sort of shopping we can get in, girl, now that we don't have any male distractions."

The red head nodded back, then followed Monique out of the school building.

X X X X

The girls spent the next few hours out shopping at the mall, trying on clothes, looking at jewelry, even spending some time at a spa. Finally they went into Bueno Nacho and quickly sat at a booth. Kim ordered, with a little help from her friend; the red head was always surprised when Monique chose a naco over something else on the menu, but knew that was one things that her two friends had in common-Ron and Monique both liked their nacos.

As the two ate, Monique kept looking over at her friend, watching the other teen fidget occasionally. She knew Kim had something on her mind, so finally she snapped her fingers in her friends face, watching the red head jump. "Something's got you distracted, so spill."

Kim looked ready to deny it, but finally sighed. "I guess it's no secret, I'm still having no luck with cooking. It's all so much easier when Ron's around. I don't know, he's patient, and always knows what to say to keep me from freaking out, or getting tied up in what's going on."

Monique shook her head. "Well, then why did you try and get me and your mom help you learn to cook? And if Ron's so good at it, why haven't you had him help you since Home Ec?" Her eyes widened slightly. "Don't tell me you're afraid of the kitchen."

"So not!" She shook her head, then seemed to look around, like she was wondering who was listening in. She finally leaned in to whisper to her friend. "Well, maybe. It's kind of like you said. I'm not sure that I've ever entered a kitchen with the intent of cooking, without starting a fire." She mumbled to herself. "Ron's so going to help me when he gets back."

Her friend quirked an eyebrow and smiled. "So when does chef boy get back?"

Kim frowned. "I'm not sure, sometime this week. I've got his schedule and stuff at home, but I haven't looked at it in a while. It's supposed to be two weeks, but it's felt like forever. I don't even remember what day he left." By this point, the two teens were finished eating, and they gather their trash, quickly throwing it away, then exiting the restaurant.

Back out in the mall, they continued their discussion. Monique gave her friend a sidelong glance. "Should be any day now, then, and I'm sure Ron will be more than happy to help you with your cooking. He'll do anything you ask of him, so I'm sure this won't be a big deal."

The red head nodded. "Yeah, I'll get Ron to help me figure out how to cook, get him to..." She shuddered, and almost choked on the word. "...tutor me, and I'll learn to cook in no time. Besides, with his experiences over the last two weeks, maybe he's got some new things he can teach me."

X X X X X X X X

The blue figure walked into his secret lab, then sealed the door behind him. He wouldn't want the other occupant of the lair to sneak in on him. Quickly he went over to the wall and opened up a small glass chamber attached to a larger glass cage. He reached his gloved hand out to the side, finding Shego's small hairbrush, that he had stolen just a few days ago. He brushed it a bit until some hair fell out; he carefully picked one up. He set the black hair down inside the glass chamber he had opened, then punched up the buttons he needed. There was a loud hissing, then steam poured out of the sides. The blue man stepped backward, and the glass cage opened, revealing a raven haired figure dressed in a black and green jumpsuit.

The first figure cackled gleefully, looking at his handiwork. This synthodrone was everything the real Shego was and more. She had all the same stamina and skills, minus the Go Team Glow which he hadn't been able to copy to the clone. Finally, finally he would be able to get back at Shego, show her who really was the boss. He laughed again, and the clone followed suit.

X X X X

She grumbled as she stalked down the hallways of Drakken's lair. After being attacked by Kim, she didn't feel like relaxing anymore; in fact, she felt even more tense than when she had left. She had returned to the lair, and was now making her way back to her room. She passed a number of henchmen, many of the men slamming their bodies up against the sides of the hallway in order to stay out of her way. She finally made it to her room, then threw her stuff on her bed.

The villainess let her hands glow, growling to herself, before she finally forced her tense body to react. She shoved her stuff off the bed, then turned around, looking towards her dresser and the small mirror sitting on top. As she looked into the mirror, her eyes darkened further as she noticed her hair was a mess after fighting Kim.

Shego started looking at the top of her dresser, to grab her hairbrush, but she noticed it wasn't where she had left it. It wasn't there. The villainess frowned, wondering if she was remembering wrong, if she had accidentally left it somewhere else in the lair. She thought hard, but knew she always kept track of all her stuff-if she left it out, Drakken may try to use it in one of his plans. She lost three music players, a portable sound system, and a TV that way before she started making sure everything that was hers stayed in her room. So if she hadn't left it in the lair, it must have been in her room, and someone took it.

Nobody went in her room, however, because if she caught them, they'd end up like henchman Steve-she'd tied him to the outside of the tower, hundreds of feet off the ground. They hadn't found him for two days, and by the time they did, he'd been reduced to a blathering idiot. He was now locked up in a mental institute in Wisconsin.

As she considered carefully, her mind went back to the last time she had seen it, and she blinked. The last time she had used the hairbrush had been right before Drakken had come by to tell her she could have the time off for her vacation. He had staggered against her dresser, knocking a few things off, then putting everything back on top. What if he had kept her hairbrush?

Growling low, she clenched her hands, turning away from the dresser by her door, instead looking towards her bathroom. She had another hairbrush, but that had been her favorite; besides which, why would the blue villain want her hairbrush? Ironically, the word 'Thief' kept rolling around in her head.

She was ticked off at Drakken, and considered going to him to demand that he return the hairbrush. The villainess decided to wait just a bit, in order to rein in her anger. It wasn't entirely for Drakken's sake-she was afraid she might torch her hairbrush in her anger, so she took a few quick breaths to try and calm her anger. She forced herself to sit on the bed instead of going to vaporize Drakken.

Shego decided to give herself a few minutes to cool down, then give him a piece of her mind. First though, she should probably put her things away. She got off the bed and grabbed her suitcase, setting it there to go through. She heard a slight creaking sound behind her and turned. She saw a flash of movement out of the corner of her eye, so she dived forward over her bed.

Just in time, too. When she turned, she was in for a shock. Standing exactly where she had stood a moment ago was someone who looked just like her. A clone. She thought back to what Zorpox had whispered to her just before they went to steal the money from the Seniors. The caped villain was right, Drakken had been planning on cloning her-that's why he'd taken her hairbrush-to get her DNA. It looked like Drakken was being his normal cheap self-this clone didn't have her glow power, so it was probably just a synthodrone.

She fired her plasma at it, but it dodged, then moved forward toward her. The duplicate attacked, and Shego blocked, then swept its feet out. Shego rushed toward the door, because she didn't want to damage her room, and almost made it unscathed. Unfortunately, she'd just reached the doorway when her clone slammed into her. They went out the door, and Shego landed hard, pined to the ground. She rolled quickly, throwing the clone off, then dashed down the hallway.

She made it to the cafeteria, and realized no one was there. This was a good a place as any. In fact, there might be some soda around that she could use to destroy it. She turned just in time, and dodged as the synthodrone tried to grab her. She kicked it in the back, and it fell forward into a table, making it collapse. Shego saw a can of pop left out, and quickly snatched it up, thrusting it at her clone.

The synthodrone had just gotten up, and the soda hit it full in the face. Nothing happened. Shego's eyes widened just before the clone attacked her again. She blocked the first attack, but then stepped backward with the second. Shego wasn't watching, and her foot slipped on some food behind her, and she crashed to the ground.

She landed hard and shook herself, only to see the synthodrone standing above her, holding a table and getting ready to bring it down on her head. She had just enough time to flinch and wait for the table to slam into her-and suddenly the synthodrone's head exploded, sending green goo everywhere. The withered husk of the synthodrone fell backward and slowly dissolved. Her eyes widened when she saw Zorpox step forward over the clone's body.

He nudged it with his foot, pointing his laser down at the remains. He looked down at Shego. "Are you alright?" Shego frowned and got to her feet. She kicked the laser out of his hand, then watched him closely. He just looked at her. "Is that anyway to treat someone who has just saved your life?"

"Um...thanks." Now she looked at him hard. "What was that about? Is that part of your plan too?"

Zorpox shook his head and sat down, so Shego sat across from him. "No, after you left, Drakken started acting...strangely. He told me he wanted to clone you, but I tried to stop him, telling him all the reasons it was a bad idea-I thought I'd talked him out of it. Obviously not. He seems to be getting more and more irrational."

"Like you?" Shego said. "I think he's trying to be like you, but not thinking things through. We need to talk to him and stop him." She started to stand up.

"No-no, if you let him know we're on to him, he'll stop us. He could go along with what we're saying, make us think he agrees, then clone you a hundred times over-we wouldn't stand a chance. Let me work on him, I think that I can show him where he's going wrong and stop him."

Shego looked at him. "How do I know I can trust you?"

Zorpox grinned. "You can't. But, I will tell you something that I hope will gain your confidence." He motioned, and against her better judgment, Shego leaned in close. "You're right-I've been playing Drakken from the beginning-the money I gave Drakken, that wasn't all of it-I've got over twice that stored away at this account." He passed a sheet of paper to her. "I was planning on using it to create my own scheme and break off from Drakken. It'll be small, but I'll still be by myself." Now he looked at her. "You know, I could use a good side kick-and I'll pay double what Drakken does."

Shego smiled faintly. "Tempting, but I'm not in it for the money." Now she frowned. "But you knew that-you're the one that set this all in motion, accusing me of stealing from him."

Zorpox nodded. "Yes, and I'm sorry about that-but I thought I was doing the right thing for me-just like you'd do-but with Drakken acting like this, he could be a danger to the world. He needs to be stopped. Are you with me?"

Shego sighed. "All right-but this is for me, not for you. As soon as we get this figure out, I don't want to see you again-just take your money and disappear, okay?"

Zorpox grinned. "I'll give you a month to try and beat Kimberly-after that, she'll be mine-deal?" Shego nodded, so he reached out his hand to shake on it. She stared at his hand, so he retracted it. "If Drakken wants you to do something, just go along with it, while I figure out how to get him come to his senses."

Shego nodded, then headed back off to her room. As soon as she was gone, Zorpox went over to his fallen laser and used it to fry any remains of the synthodrone. He didn't want to leave any evidence.

X X X X X X X X

Kim made it home rather late; fortunately, she still had an hour or so before bedtime. She took that time to get ready for bed, and then went down to give her parents a brief explanation of how the day had gone. Her mother seemed rather relieved that she was home fine, but Kim shrugged it off, saying that it had been no big.

She went back upstairs, then turned her computer on, making a short diary entry for the day. Once that was finished, she took a little more time to write an update to her 'Mission Logs' as Ron called them, telling about her fight with Shego, and solving the mystery of what the villains had been doing. That went pretty smoothly, as well, and she was just getting ready to turn in for the night when her Kimmunicator beeped. Grabbing it off her nightstand, the brought it to her face.

"Waaaade." She moaned, dragging the name out, "I was just getting ready for bed. Please tell me this isn't for a mission."

"It's not for a mission."

"Really?" Kim blinked. "You're not just telling me that, are you?"

He smiled. "No, but it is important. Dr Director herself called, and wanted me to put her in to contact with you."

The teen shook her head, a little surprised. "Um, okay, put her on, I guess."

Instantly, the Dirctor's stern face appeared on screen. Kim squinted a bit, now getting a little tired. "Do you ever sleep?"

Betty smiled back. "I've been told I'll have enough time to sleep when I'm dead." She let her face get more serious. "Kim, we have something of a situation that I wanted to get your input in, since I know that you've been working on a similar case."

Kim yawned. "You mean Drakken and Shego and the plan, and all the stuff that's been stolen and going on?" The director nodded. The red head continued. "I took care of that this morning, it was no big, I know all about it."

"You...you do?"

The teen smirked. "Yeah, Wade's even got video of Will Du doing his surveillance. No, I know all about that, foiled the plan. No arrests, but you know how it is with that resort, no extradition treaties."

Dr Director nodded again. "Yes, a rather painful thorn in GJ's side sometimes. Well, congratulations on a job well done, Kim. If you don't mind, I've got a few questions that I'd like answered about that situations, so if you have time in the next couple of days, do you think you could come in and brief me about it?"

"Um, sure, I guess." Kim was a bit surprised, since Betty hadn't been this directly interested in any of her missions-at least not since the 'Ron Factor' incident. "I'll see if I can make time. If that's all..." She trailed off, and the director nodded, giving another small smile. "Good night, Dr Director."

"Good night, Kim."

The teen closed the device down, then slipped under her covers. Now, with any luck, she could get some sleep.

X X X X

"Why didn't you ask her about the mysterious man?" Du questioned his superior after the connection closed.

Dr Director shook her head. "Well, first off, she didn't mention him, so she must not consider him to be that big of a threat. Besides, didn't you see, she was pretty tired, and badgering her for more information would be counterproductive at best. She could leave out important details, or outright refuse to help if pushed to far. She isn't a GJ employee, you know."

Will tsked. "She is just an amateur, can't even work up the discipline to stay awake to report."

Betty smirked back. "Not unlike a certain agent I know who fell asleep at his desk writing his reports. Put a pretty large drool stain on his paper, if I recall correctly."

He narrowed his eyes, crossing his arms stubbornly. "That was after three full shifts, I was running on coffee and adrenaline. It is not the same."

She chuckled. "Of course not, Will." The director changed tracks. "I've got a few things I need to get done here, you're dismissed. Goodnight Will."

He gave a brief nod. "Good night, Director."

* * *

_**A/N** And with that, everything is in place. Coming up next chapter, Zorpox's plot is revealed, and Kim finally learns what her friend has been up to-although probably not in the way anyone expected._


	19. You just might get it

_**A/N** Companion chapter, as it were, to chapter 2._

_And thanks to Eddy13 for his beta checking._

* * *

**Chapter 19 ...You just might get it.**

_**(Wednesday Morning-Week 3)**_

Shego didn't see Drakken again until the next day, but by then she'd had a chance to cool off and really think about what Zorpox had said. She still really found it hard to believe that Dr D created a synthodrone of her, but Zorpox was right-ever since he got cloning in his head, he wanted to try it. He was probably trying to see if the copy was as good as her, and since it wasn't, maybe he'd learned his lesson. She was still thinking on this when she heard a knock on her door. She went over and opened it, and Drakken was standing there. "Shego..." He paused. "Come with me, we have work to do."

She nodded and followed him to the hovercar, then hopped in and waited for Drakken to get into his seat. As soon as he was sitting down, she lifted the hovercraft, then turned and asked him where they were going.

"Dementor's lair." He said shortly, seemingly deep in thought.

Shego set the hovercar in motion, then looked at him. "We have to get something else? I thought you'd already gotten what you needed-Zorpox sent in that robot, and it got all the rocket fuel, what else do you need?"

"Zorpox said that he wanted me to get some items that he missed." As soon as he said this, Drakken's eyes got wide and he clamped a hand over his mouth. He blinked twice, then tried again. "I mean I need something else for my plan."

Shego looked at him suspiciously. "Just what _is_ you plan exactly?"

"I-it's very complicated and you wouldn't understand it." He looked around, not making eye contact.

"You always love to gloat and rant Dr D, so tell me this great plan."

"Alright." He growled. "It's not my plan-Zorpox told me to go out and get these items, and he told me not to tell you it was his idea." He turned away, pouting.

"Wait." Shego grabbed his shoulder and spun him around. "You're still following Zorpox's plan?" He nodded. "You didn't try and clone me?"

Drakken frowned. "Clone you? Shego, you have a no-cloning clause in your contract-besides, I couldn't clone you if I wanted to-it's expensive, and I haven't bought the equipment to do it-although now I can. What are you getting at?"

"Zorpox saved me from a clone of myself, and told me that you sent it-he blasted it, then told me a tale about how you had seemed to be trying be more like him-you know, random. The little fink was playing both of us from the start. He's been pitting us against each other, and we're so busy watching each other, we're not watching him."

"You mean you're not planning on getting rid of me and becoming your own villain?"

"No. Well..." She amended. "Not today. I'll give you plenty of warning if I decided to do that."

"So you're not working against me-" Now Drakken was suspicious. "How do I know I can trust _you_?"

"See-he's made us suspicious of each other-you don't trust me, and I'm only now starting to trust you again..." He continued to eye her. "Alright, to prove that I'm not working for you for the money-here, take a look at my bank account." She pulled up her bank account, then leaned back so Drakken could see.

"Where did you get that money? That's almost five times what Zorpox stole!"

She smirked. "Let's just say that the Seniors pay extremely well. Don't you see-I've got plenty of money, I don't care about the money any more-I'm in it for the random destruction...and I still want to beat Kimmie."

Drakken looked at her. "So does that mean I don't need to pay you any more?" She glared at him, so he dropped it. "I guess we need to deal with Zorpox, don't we?"

Shego flipped the hovercraft around and grinned evilly. "Yes, I think it's time he gets what's coming."

X X X X

Zorpox was bent over his table, working on a small black and red computer chip when he heard a noise from the ceiling. He turned around, and Shego dropped from above, landing right in front of the caped villain. "Alright, Zorpox, we figured out your little plan." She stepped to the side, and Drakken landed in a heap next to her. "We've had enough of this."

Drakken dusted himself off and looked at the blue sidekick. "You're playing us against each other-well it won't work. We're on to you, Zorpox."

He stared at the two villains, his eyes dangerous. "We? Don't you mean Shego figure it out, then had to pound it into your head?" He laughed as Drakken's eyes widened in surprise. He continued, harshly. "I've been pulling your strings from the start, _Doctor,_" he emphasized the word sarcastically, "I know you, almost as well as I know myself. If there's a buffoon in this room, it's you."

"You always think you're so smart, that you're so evil-well, Doc, you're probably the most pathetic excuse for a villain we ever fought. You don't think things through, you rush your ideas, and when things go wrong, try to blame others. Half the time, you don't even have a plan-you just hope that things will work out, that Shego will be able to pick up the pieces when you fail. Well guess what, she's good, but she's not a miracle worker."

Now he looked at her, but continued to talk to Drakken. "You don't know how good you have it-the most dangerous villain in the world is working for you-and you don't even have the courtesy to ask what she thinks, to try and find out her opinions. You could learn a lot from her, Dr D, if you ever stopped to ask. I offered her more money that you could ever hope for to walk away, to let you fail, but instead, she stands by you-why, I'll never know."

"The best part of this-oh yes, the best part of this is that I managed to do this even with this blasted headband." He pulled it off his head and grinned. "You're so pathetic, even this plan was doomed from the start." Zorpox finished. He threw the headband to Drakken. The blue doctor wasn't expecting that, and fumbled around with it before dropping it to the ground. It broke in two, with its wires and electronics laying in pieces on the ground.

Shego's eyes widened in shock, and she stared at Zorpox. Then she turned to Drakken. "You told me it was fool proof!"

Drakken looked at her, just as surprised. "It-it-it was-he-he..." Drakken started accusingly at Zorpox. "What did you do?"

"You said I couldn't mess with the programming of the headband-you never said I couldn't take it off."

"Bu-bu-but..." Drakken stuttered, trying to get it out.

"'But how?'" Zorpox laughed maniacally. "I made my own little attitudinator band." He raised his arm, showing a band on his wrist. "This one lets me do what I want." Suddenly a small laser appeared in his hand. "I wouldn't try it, Shego."

Her hands had started to glow, but after seeing the laser, she paused, then grinned. "You may have the technical skills, but I'll try my speed against yours anytime." She raised her hands and fired, the green plasma shooting at Zorpox. It hit the laser and turned it into molten scrap, and Zorpox dropped it quickly.

"Ha, I told you I was better."

Zorpox smiled faintly. "Better, but not smarter." He pushed a button on his belt, and heard a small confirmation beep.

Drakken looked at him suspiciously. "What did you just do?"

"Oh nothing...just making sure you have a Blast." At the last word, a small platform raised up in the center of the lair and a small object appeared. The item was a medium sized metal box, maybe three foot on each side. "Drakken, do you remember all those supplies I stole from Dementor? They can all be used to create rocket fuel...or a very large bomb. I've rigged it to explode. It will probably destroy the entire lair. Of course, if you give up, I'm willing to turn it off. You have five minutes." He stood smirking, his arms crossed.

Shego fired her plasma at Zorpox, but it just bounced off of his belt's shield. She hadn't realized that he'd gotten it working. She growled, then turned and grabbed Drakken. "Let's go, Dr D." She hit a panel on the wall and a small escape hatch opened. She threw Drakken in, then jumped after him. They both slid down to an underground hanger, and Shego quickly powered up their hovercar. She waited till Drakken was in, then gave it full power.

She blasted out of there, quickly putting distance between them and the hideout. She turned to ask Drakken about their next move, when a small screen on the hovercar lit up. Zorpox's face appeared. "You think I didn't know about this-tsk tsk, Shego. I was ready, and I decided to let you go-I got what I want, all your funds, all your supplies, all your contacts-everything. Of course, now I don't need you any more...so I'll let you go. Final lesson, Drakken-make sure you have everything planned out in advance...oh, and by the way, you've got ten seconds left. Good bye." Zorpox's face disappeared.

Shego turned to Drakken in terror, then shoved him out of the hovercraft. She dived out after him, and they both hit the water hard. The villainess turned and watched as the hovercar banked hard and went off toward the east-at the speed it was traveling, it quickly became a miniscule dot; then it exploded. She turned and pushed Drakken under the water, then followed him. The concussion wave could be felt underwater, but fortunately it wasn't dangerous. Drakken surfaced, then looked over at Shego. "Don't say it...please, don't say it."

She said it. "I told you so."

X X X X

Shego walked out of the surf, and made her way up the shore. She went up into the grass and threw herself down, exhausted from the hour swim to shore. They'd made it most of the way to the mainland in the hovercar, but had still been nearly a mile out from the edge. Shego could have easily swam that distance-if she hadn't had to deal with Drakken as well. He was a poor swimmer, so she'd had to help him along-he'd nearly drowned three times. After the first time, he'd complained endlessly. By the third time, it was unbearable. She'd swam the rest of the way herself, leaving him just off shore.

She finally worked up the energy to lift her head and look out to see if her employer made it. She watched as Drakken washed up on shore, the waves rolling him over and over before depositing him headfirst in the sand. He kicked his feet, but wasn't able to get out. Shego sighed and went over, grabbed a leg, and pulled him out. He rolled over and got to his feet, then tried to brush off the sand. He opened his mouth, but Shego beat him to it. "Don't. Say. Anything." Drakken looked at her face, then nodded rapidly.

Drakken obediently followed her up to the grass, then over to the road. He looked away from Shego, and spotted a policeman walking toward them. _Uh oh_.

"Um, miss?"

Shego turned her head to the voice, then narrowed her eyes dangerously. "What?"

"Uh, I saw the explosion, and watched you both swim to shore, so I'm afraid I need you both to come with me." He looked over his shoulder toward his police car. "That's my car."

Shego smiled and said sweetly, "Oh, it is, is it." She flared her hands up and fired a green blast at the car. It hit the gas tank and caused the vehicle to explode. "I don't think we need a ride."

"O-o-o-okay..." The policeman slowly backed up, then turned and ran from her. He kept looking over his shoulder at her, and missed the hot dog cart in front of him. He plowed into it, and food went everywhere.

Shego watched as he fell, then she turned and stalked off, dragging Drakken with her. She was able to hijack a passing car, and soon she was driving them away from the beach. Drakken looked at her fearfully and asked quietly, "C-can I talk now?"

The villainess looked at him and growled, but then sighed. "Okay, Dr D, we've just let the most dangerous villain in the world loose. What do we do now? We can't go back to any of our lairs, he's sure to have a trap set. We can't turn to any of the other villains because of what you've done to them, and there's no way we can take him ourselves. Any ideas?"

"Um..." Drakken closed his eyes, deep in thought. After about five minutes of this, he realized that there was one person that would help them. He opened his eyes and looked at Shego. "Well, the other villains wouldn't help us anyway, but there is one person that I know that helps people when they're in trouble..."

"No-Oh no. There's no way we're getting Princess to help us take back our lair. What makes you think she'll help us-she wants us out of business. And what about what this will do to our reputation-we had to seek help from the hero because we were kicked out of our hideout by her sidekick! They'll never stop laughing." Shego saw all of her hard work disappearing before her eyes.

"Now wait, Shego. She'll help us because she wants the buffoon back. Besides, you've taken hits to your reputation before." At a dark look from Shego, he amended his comment. "I mean you don't really care about what the other villains think-you're still tougher than all of them."

"Fine, so we'll get her help. Now, she lives in Middleton, right? That will take us a while to get there, so what do we do in the meantime?"

Drakken grinned at her. "A hundred bottles of Coco Moo on the wall, a hundred bottles of Coco Moo..."

Shego's scream was heard all over the state.

X X X X

Zorpox watched the screen as Shego and Drakken bailed out of the hovercar. Ten seconds later it exploded, sending a huge shockwave over the water. He adjusted the satellite to focus on where Shego and Drakken had hit the water, and watched as they resurfaced. He spent the next hour watching as they swam to shore and hijacked the car.

The villain knew that the explosive wouldn't stop them, but he wasn't worried-he knew exactly where they were going. He easily had a couple of hours before he had to worry about them again. He frowned slightly. It was...about eight o'clock here so that would make it...six in Middleton. School didn't start until after seven, so he had an hour to get there.

Zorpox quickly changed his outfit, putting on Ron's signature clothes. He adjusted his skin color back to normal, then checked himself in a mirror. He looked just like Ron-no one could tell the difference. He made sure to grab the last items he needed, then rushed down to the hanger, picked a hovercar, and quickly made his way to Middleton. He parked it just outside of the city, then made his way to Kim's house.

He walked up to the door and knocked, waiting for someone to open it up. He heard a couple of loud sounds from inside, then a loud, "Tweebs!" He chucked, then laughed when the door was opened. Kim was standing there soaking wet, an angry expression on her face. Her eyes widened when she saw Ron, and she dashed forward, giving him a big hug. Ron had to fight to stand on his feet, and barely held on to the item in his hand. He hugged her back, then Kim stepped away.

Ron looked down. "Kiiiim-now I'm all wet!" He tried to frown at her, but couldn't keep from smiling. He looked down again, and just seemed to remember he had something in his hands. He held it out toward her. "I-I made you this...well, for all of you."

Kim reached out and took the pan from him, then peeked inside. "Ron...brownies? Thank you." She led him into the kitchen and placed the brownies on the counter. She then called to her mother, "Mom, Ron's back."

Mrs. Possible was getting her things ready for work, and turned around to see Ron standing there. "It's good to see you, Ronald. So, how was the trip?"

Ron smiled at her. "Oh, you know, Mrs. Dr. P-plenty of cooking and eating-no Bueno Nacho, but the rest of it was okay. I brought back some of the brownies I made before I left, they were the perfect batch."

"Why thank you, Ronald, that's so thoughtful." Ann Possible walked over and pull off the wrapping, then looked at them. "Ooh, peanut butter and chocolate chip."

Kim turned to Ron. "Wait right here, I've got to get changed. The tweebs were at it again." She dashed upstairs, and was back down in record time, this time in a different outfit. She stood outside the kitchen and called to her friend, "Ron, could you grab my backpack for me?"

He reached out with his left hand and grabbed her backpack from the counter, then went over and gave it to her. She grabbed it and put it on, then yelled to her mother that they were going to school. They quickly went outside and headed to the school, with Kim telling him everything that had happened the last two weeks. She finally finished with this morning.

"So then the tweebs thought it would be fun to make a mini-storm in the house. Of course, they chose to set things up in the living room, and when I asked what they were doing, they thought they'd show me. It's a good thing Rufus wasn't there, or he'd have had a fit." She frowned, then turned to Ron.

The blond took this opportunity to ask a question on his mind. "So Kim, where _is_ Rufus?"

"Oh! Rufus wanted to play some video games and you know how much I don't like to, so Felix volunteered to take him for a day so Rufus could get some play time in. I'm sure we'll see him first thing."

Ron looked at her, then down at the watch on his wrist. "Only if we hurry." He showed her the time.

Kim made an exclamation of surprise, then grabbed his hand. She ran off to the school, practically dragging Ron with her. They made it into class with barely any time to spare, so they didn't have a chance to find Rufus and Felix. They suffered through their first few classes, but were able to relax when lunch came around.

The teens made their way through the lunch line, then sat down at their usual table. Monique joined them shortly, and was ready to grill Ron about his trip. She started asking all sorts of questions, and Ron answered them all easily, telling her about the many foods that he had made and things he had learned. He explained that he wouldn't be able to get his cooking certificate for a few weeks, because it had to be mailed to him later. He told the ladies he was going for more food, grabbed his tray with his left hand, and headed up to the lunch lady. As soon as he was gone, Monique turned to Kim.

"Is it just me, girl, or does he seem off?"

Kim frowned at her. "Off? Off how?"

"I don't know-there's just something that doesn't seem right. Where's Rufus?"

"Rufus?" Kim laughed. "Is that it? He's still with Felix. We haven't had a chance to get him yet. What, you thought this wasn't Ron or something?"

Monique looked at him, going through the food line. He seemed to sense he was being watched, and turned and waved at her. He turned back to the lunch lady, and pointed at the food he wanted with his left hand, and made grand gestures with his right. Finally he threw both his arms in the air and stalked off, back toward their table. He sat down, shaking his head.

"I tell you, she's got no sense. If I want cheese on my chocolate pudding, then I should have cheese!"

Monique gave him an incredulous look. "Cheese? On your pudding?" She stage whispered to Kim. "I think those two weeks made him go off the deep end." Monique was surprised to see Ron glare at her. Kim had turned to Monique, and missed the look Ron gave her. When Kim turned back, he was smiling normally. Monique just chalked it up to her active imagination, but she still couldn't help think something was wrong.

Kim and Ron left, saying that they had to take care of some other things before their next class. They headed out of the cafeteria, waving goodbye to Monique. She just sat there, eating mechanically, when Felix showed up. There was still a few minutes before the end of lunch, so Felix rolled up to talk to her. Rufus hopped up on the table and looked at Monique.

Monique remembered that her friends had been looking for Rufus, so she looked down at the little mole rat. "Ron and Kim were just in here. If you hurry, you can still catch them." Rufus perked up when he heard Ron's name, and dashed out in the hall when she pointed where to go.

After Rufus left, Felix looked at Monique. "Ron's back?"

Monique nodded. "Yeah, he got back this morning. I don't know, though, it seemed like he was off or something."

Felix didn't seem to have heard all she said. "What, this morning? He was supposed to be gone two weeks-and get back tomorrow. He got back early?"

Monique locked her eyes with Felix. "He didn't say. I knew there was something off about that boy." She started to get up, but Felix put a hand on her arm.

"Now wait, maybe he just got back early, and forgot to mention it. You know Ron, he's always forgetting things, even what's left and what's right." Felix tried to smile and reassure Monique.

Something about what he said triggered something in her mind. "Say that again."

"I said he's always forgetting what's left and what's right." Now Felix was really confused. _What is she getting at?_

Monique's eyes widened as she realized what was off about Ron. He grabbed his tray with his left hand..._his left hand_...She jumped up, and grabbed Felix's arm, indicating that he should follow. "That wasn't Ron. That boy's right handed, but he was using his left hand to do things."

Felix wasn't convinced, but he followed her out into the hall.

X X X X

Kim and Ron walked down the hall, heading toward Kim's locker. She had some things she needed for the next class, so they were going to get them, when Ron stopped her just short of her locker. He looked right at her, then placed a hand on her shoulder. "Kim, I need your help with something."

"What is it, Ron? You know I'll help if I can."

He smiled a very un-Ron like smile, then said cheerfully, "Yes, I know you will." Ron lifted the hand on her shoulder and moved it behind her ear-and with a click, placed a small microchip. The Neural Compliance Chip started working immediately.

"Ro-" Kim cut off mid-word, her eyes taking up a vacant stare. Zorpox grinned, then laughed, amused that he'd been able to fool her so easily.

Earlier, Rufus had come running down the hall, but stopped up short when he saw Ron and Kim standing there. Something didn't seem right, so he stood just out of sight. He watched as Ron placed the chip, then growled when Kim's eyes lost focus. Just at the same time, Monique and Felix came down the hall, and stopped short when they saw their friends standing there. Rufus continued to watch as they faced off.

Zorpox stepped forward and laughed maniacally. "Boo-Yah-ha-ha-ha-ha. Hello, I don't think we've been formally introduced." He took an imperious pose and looked at Kim's friends. "I am Zorpox the Conqueror, and you are Monique and Felix. A pleasure to meet you." He bowed.

"Ron, what do you-" Monique started to question him, but he interrupted.

"Zorpox, Zorpox please."

"Fine. Zorpox, what do you think you're doing?" Monique crossed her arms and stared at the villain.

"Oh, that's easy-Kimberly here is part of my master plan. That's the only reason that I came to this school; although it _has_ been good to see you. Now, come, Kimberly Ann, my plan awaits." He turned, and strode away, Kim following behind him.

"Now wait a minute!" Felix yelled at Zorpox, and the villain stopped. He turned, then looked at Felix, his face a mask.

"You don't want to do that." Zorpox's voice was cold and hard, and it sent chills down Monique's spine. She hoped that Felix knew what he was doing, and watched as he oriented himself to stop Zorpox.

His cyber-robotic wheelchair sent out its claws, in an attempt to grab a hold of Zorpox. The caped villain stepped to the side, near Kim, then pushed a button on his belt. An orange shield appeared, and it was able to repel the arms trying to grab him. Zorpox laughed at the futile attack, then left without a word. Kim went with him, and in no time at all, they were gone. Felix and Monique stared at each other in confusion, then followed them. They went out the front door of the school, then looked up when they heard a loud noise.

Zorpox and Kim were in a hovercar above their heads, looking down at them. The caped villian grinned and waved, then told Kim to wave too. She did so mechanically, her hand moving in a set arc. Zorpox reached into Kim's back pocket, and threw something down. He gave a slight bow, then said, "A last gift," before flying off.

Felix rolled over to the item, and used one of his chair's robotic arms to pick the item. He went back to Monique's side, and held it up for her to see. The Kimmunicator. She grabbed it, then put in a call to Wade.

"Kim, do you...Monique, what's wrong?" He instantly picked up on her look, knew that something wasn't right. She looked scared, and very confused.

"Wade, can you track Kim without the Kimmunicator?" He shook his head, so Monique asked her next question. "What about Ron?" He started typing, then frowned.

"I-I can't get a lock. Monique, what's going on?"

"Let me start at the beginning. This morning, Ron showed up at Kim's house and-"

"What? Ron wasn't supposed to be back until tomorrow."

"I know, and don't interrupt." She gave Wade a dirty look and continued. "I guess they spent the morning in classes, and I met up with them at lunch. I thought something seemed off about that boy, but Kim didn't see anything wrong, so I let it go. They left together, and then Felix showed up, and he mentioned that Ron shouldn't have been back yet. Then he said something, and I figure out what's wrong-Ron was using his left hand more then his right."

"Uh-oh..."

"Uh-huh-big problem. We followed them, and Ron did something to Kim-only it wasn't Ron-he called himself Zorpox. And then they left in some sort of hovercraft." At the mention of Zorpox, Wade had paled, then frantically started typing on his computer.

"I think we've got big problems. Monique, I want the two of you to go to the Possibles' house-I'll get the Possibles home, then have the Stoppables over, and I'll explain what I think happened." Monique nodded, then cut the communication. She motioned to Felix, and they both headed out. In their hurry, they missed Rufus come running out of the doors.

He'd held back after seeing what happened, but then when he'd tried to follow, he hadn't been able to keep up with their faster movement. Rufus stopped outside the door, then perched up, looking around. He turned around and was about to head back into the school when he felt someone grab him from behind. He squeaked, but figured it was Felix coming back for him. He was surprised when he came face to face with someone else.

Shego grinned at the little mole rat. "And where are you going?"

X X X X

Monique used her phone to call the Drs Possible, and Wade contacted the Stoppables, so that by the time Felix and Monique got to the Possible's home, everyone was there, even the tweebs. They all went into the living room and sat on the couch or the floor, and Wade used the living room TV as a giant monitor. He quickly explained that he figured Zorpox had returned.

The Possibles and Stoppables both knew about Zorpox, but Monique and Felix didn't know what was going on. Monique looked at Wade. "Who's Zorpox?"

"A while back, they were holding a Villains' Expo at the Tri-City convention center. Drakken tried to use a new invention, an attitudinator, to remove his good energy to leave just his bad energy. The machine was broken, and Drakken's evil energy was transferred to Ron, making him his evil alter ego, Zorpox-or at least that what we thought happened."

Dr Ann Possible looked up. "What you thought happened?"

Wade nodded. "Somehow, Ron is Zorpox again, only this time Drakken is still evil. I guess that Zorpox is not Drakken's bad energy, but somehow Ron's evil side."

"Ron's evil side?" Monique couldn't even believe that he had an evil side, much less that Ron could be dangerous. He may make mistakes and do things wrong occasionally, but she'd testify that he didn't have an evil bone in his body. She'd never even seen him angry, really angry about something-Ron was the most mellow person she knew. How bad could his evil side be? She asked the question aloud.

"Cyclonic storms, Typhoons, earthquakes...and that's just what we know about. Obviously he was somehow able to get a hold of a Neural Compliance chip, if he was able to use it on Kim...hold on a moment, I've got something else I've been working with..." Wade disappeared from the screen, although they could still see in his room. He seemed to be talking to someone else off screen, but they couldn't hear what was being said.

Tim looked at his brother. "Did you put it in the closet?"

Jim looked back. "It might be in your dresser drawer..."

Tim started up toward their room. "Let's find it." Jim followed, and the twins disappeared, heading up to their room to find something.

Everyone else in the room watched as they left, then looked at each other, confused. Felix frowned. "What's a Neural Compliance chip?"

Mrs. Possible started to stand up. "And what do the twins know about it..."

She sat back down when Wade appeared back on the screen. "A Neural Compliance chip is basically a Mind control device. Jim and Tim know about it because they were there when Drakken used it on Kim."

"What! My Kimmie-cub was mind controlled by Drakken?" Mr Possible stood up angrily, then realized there wasn't anything he could do, so he sat down.

Wade tried to calm Mr Possible down. "Ron was able to fight off Kim and Shego until the twins were able to use a silicon phase disruptor to knock the chips off."

Mrs Stoppable finally spoke up. "Ronald had to fight off both Kim and that dangerous green lady? Is he all right?"

Mr Stoppable grabbed her hand. "He's fine, this happened a while ago. We knew this was going to be dangerous, for both of them, but they can handle it." He looked around the room. "We need to stay on topic, concentrate on what to do now."

Wade nodded. "Right. Since Zorpox made another Neural Compliance chip, we should be able to use the twins' Silicon Phase Disruptor to destroy it. From there, Kim can stop Zorpox and use the Attitudinator on him."

Right on time, the tweebs came down the stairs, holding a small device in their hands. Tim looked at Wade. "We found it..."

Jim continued, "...under our old lunar model..."

"...supporting one of its legs." Tim finished.

Wade nodded. "Good, we should be able to use some of those parts to make the Kimmunicator fire off a Silicon Disruptor beam to shut off the mind control chip." Blueprints appeared on the corner of the screen, and the twins quickly grabbed the Kimmunicator and got to work.

While the twins worked, Ann Possible looked at Wade. "That's the easy part-we still have to find Kim and Ron, and use the Silicon Phase Disruptor on her-which I know won't be easy. Anything's Possible for a Possible, but I don't know if we'll be able to get close enough to use this on her." A thought struck her. "Where did Zorpox come from anyway-"

"I think I can explain." Everyone in the room whirled at the new voice, surprised to see who was standing there.

Shego stood in front of them, Dr Drakken standing just behind her. While the Possibles and Stoppables had been busy discussing things, they hadn't been watching the front door, and the two villains had come right in. No one was sure sure what to make of this, because Shego didn't look ready for a fight. In fact, she looked...embarrassed. She stood uncertainly, she had been expecting to deal with Kimmie, not her family and friends.

Mr Possible stood up. "Drakken! This is all your doing." He started to advance toward the mad scientist, anger clear on his face.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa..." Drakken backpedaled, before backing into the closed front door. He started to reach behind, grasping for the door handle, but couldn't find it. He was trying to decide if he dared take his eye off the angry parent to look when Shego stepped between them. Mr Possible hesitated.

Ann's voice came from the couch. "Sit down, James, and let's listen to what they have to say." Mr Possible gave a last hard look at Drakken, then turned and sat beside his wife. Shego settled down, then turned and grabbed Drakken, pushing him forward to the center of the room to explain. He gave her a betrayed look, but faced the Possibles, doing his best to look sincere and sorry.

"Um...after your daughter disrupted my last plan, I tried to come up with a new idea-but I couldn't think of anything. I thought about all of my other plans, and realized that none of them had really even come close to taking over the world-I needed some new ideas. Shego suggested that I get some help-"

Shego dropped her hands on Drakken's shoulders, and he gulped. "Oh, no, Dr D, you're not blaming me for this. I said that Kimmie was able to stop all your plans and that you hadn't even come close to beating her. You're the one that figured you needed someone who had almost beaten her-you thought you could use Zorpox-I was against it from the start. Don't drag me down with you." She dug her claws into his shoulder, and he gasped.

"All right, all right, Shego was against it from the start, it was all my idea." She released her grip, and he rubbed his shoulders. "Ow, that's the last time I give you a long vacation-you came back crankier than when you left." He gulped as Shego glared at him. He looked for sympathy from someone in the room, but they stared at him too. He sighed.

"Yes, anyway, the buffo-or, um, the sidekick actually came closest to taking over the world, or at least beating Kim, so I thought I could get his help to take over the world. I'm the one that set up the culinary trip, to get the sidekick alone for two weeks-I figured that would be enough time to take over the world. I rigged up an attitudinator band that would turn him into Zorpox, and adjusted it so he couldn't disobey me-but somehow he did, and took over all my operations. He forced us out of my Caribbean lair, and we made our way here as quickly as possible. I figured I could get Kim to help us, but didn't realize that Zorpox had gotten here first." Now he looked at Kim's parents, unsure of what to do next. If Kim wasn't here, if she had been mind controlled, they wouldn't stand a chance against Zorpox.

"What does he want?" Everyone looked at Monique. "No, really, what's he after? He said that Kim was part of his plan, and for the last two weeks he had to have been doing something. Zorpox obviously has something in mind-do you know what?"

Shego shook her head. "No clue. That why I never trusted him-he's all over the map. I mean look at Drakken-he wants to take over the world." She tapped the side of his head. "That's it. Me, I'm mainly in it for the money, and the frequent fights and random destruction. Killigan's into golf, Monkey Fist wants to be the monkey king, and DNAmy-well, she's just into cuddly stuff." Shego said the last part disgustedly, and Drakken cringed. "But Zorpox-he's a mystery."

Drakken looked at her. "No he's not, he wanted to create that satellite system to attack anywhere in the world."

Wade frowned. "I doubt it-he's not really into the whole world domination thing-if you remember, he wanted to have the world's supply of Nacos-so maybe he's after food?"

Jim spoke up. "No-not Nacos..."

"...but Bueno Nacho itself." Tim finished.

Wade nodded. "Makes sense, but I doubt there's anything we can do about that-there are hundreds of ways that he could threaten them, and without anything to work on, we'd never figure it out in time-we need to go after Zorpox right now, while he's busy."

Suddenly Drakken realized something. "I bet he thinks we're dead-he made the hovercar explode, he might think we died in the blast-maybe we can surprise him."

Mr Stoppable finally spoke up. "I doubt it-my son may seem to be out of it at times, but I know he can be brilliant too; and if it's true that Zorpox is this smart, he probably knew that you would escape-he may have even been counting on it." He shook his head. "No, whatever you do, Zorpox will be waiting, so you'll just have to do something he doesn't expect."

Ann Possible looked at the two villains. "I assume you were the ones leading Kim all around on those wild goose chases." They nodded, but indicated it was Zorpox's plan to do those things. "That means that Zorpox is always doing one thing, and distracting with another-he would either expect you to go in with one plan, to take things back, or he would expect you to try and sneak in and stop him. I think there might be a way to surprise him." As she outlined her plan, everyone leaned in close.

X X X X

"Wah-wah-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha." Zorpox laughed loudly, looking at Kim. She stood, eyes blank and staring forward, her body stiff. The caped villain couldn't help but chuckle again, enjoying her helpless state. "Ah, Kimberly, Kimberly, the things we can do, the two of us. We could take over the world, capture the other villains, steal all the ice cream in the world, teach Barkin a lesson." He mulled it over. "So many choices, so little time." He looked at her. "I know you can hear me, Kimberly Ann: I can hear you breathing." He laughed at his little joke, then motioned to a chair, and she sat on his order.

"Yes," he repeated, "I know you can hear me, so I won't tell you any of my plan-but I will tell you that it is very good. Not perfect, no plan is perfect-as I showed Dr Drakken-but even you would be hard pressed to stop me. I know that Shego and Drakken will be back to try and stop me, but with your help-willing or unwilling-I should be able to succeed." He grinned. "If not, I'm sure I'll have another chance later."

Kim just continued to sit there, her eyes unmoving, her gaze blank. Zorpox reached out and snapped his fingers a few times, right in front of her face, but she didn't react. He laughed again, then stood up, motioning to Kim to do the same. She did so automatically, forced to do as he commanded. "Come with me, Kimberly, and see if you can figure out my plan." She followed.

Zorpox walked out of the room, down the hall, then made his way to Drakken's lab. He walked inside, then made his way to an upper platform. He walked over to a large computer, then motioned for Kim to stand off screen. He pushed a button, and the monitor lit up. There was a large room on screen, it looked like some sort of conference room, because there was a large table in the middle of the room. Surrounding it were a number of high-class people, dressed in suits and talking with each other. They all looked up at the large TV in their own room.

"Who are you?" The man sitting at the end of the table looked at Zorpox in confusion. "What's going on?"

"Ah, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Zorpox the Conqueror...well, actually 'the Conqueror' is really a title, but you get the idea."

The man frowned. "I don't really care who you are, I just want you off my screen. I'm the President of Bueno Nacho, and your wasting my time. Goodbye." He hit a button on the table, probably expecting it to turn off the screen. Nothing happened. He tried again, and again, but Zorpox was still on screen. The villain chuckled quietly. The president finally stood up, then walked over to the door, and tried to open it. It wouldn't budge, the villain's actions earlier in the week giving him complete control.

Zorpox laughed louder.

Finally, the president gave up on the door, and turned back to Zorpox. "I don't know who you are, or what you want, but I want you gone. Now!"

The villain leaned in close to the screen. "Give me what I want, and I'll leave-make me head of Bueno Nacho, and no one gets hurt, you don't lose business, and I still get what I want."

"Are you mad? Why would I do that? You can't threaten me-I'll-I'll get Kim Possible. She helps people in need, stops villains, I'll have her stop you." The president grinned confidently-all of the villains were afraid of Kim Possible.

"This Kim Possible?" Zorpox waved his hand, and Kim stepped into view. The president stepped back, surprised to see her. "I'm afraid she can't help you right now, el Presidente-now listen closely. You have hundreds of Beuno Nachos world wide, in every country, and in every nationality. In fact, they're probably the most numerous food chain in the world-and the second most numerous business chain, second only to Smarty Mart." Zorpox paused, seeing if the president knew where he was going with this. He didn't, so Zorpox continued.

"For every Bueno Nacho, there's a Smarty Mart nearby-and those stores send you the supplies you need for creating your foods, right? I've...adjusted...your supply list to include some other items-sheeps' lungs, sheeps' stomach, some spices, everything you need to create the noxious blend that gives you Scottish Haggis. I've even updated Bueno Nacho's menus worldwide, to make them think that you here at the headquarters planned on making the change." Realization started to dawn on the president's face.

"Yes-every restaurant, all across the world, will be creating a new batch of Duff Killigan's Haggis, a vile creation that is sure to cause everyone to quit eating there. All you work to create a Tex-Mex food chain, down the drains, in...about four hours-unless you meet my demands. And to prove that I can do this, I've sent you a batch of Killigan's Haggis, that should be arriving about...now." There was a knock at the door, and the president looked over in shock. A Bueno Nacho delivery man walked in, and set the container on the table, opening it up. As he had walked in, the door clicked behind him, and when he tried to open it back up, the door was locked.

Meanwhile the president was staring at the mess of food sitting in front of him. He was obviously disgusted; he poked at the food, and it almost appeared to move. He looked at one of his cabinet members. "Try this."

The man's eyes widened, but he could see the president was dead serious. He hesitantly reached out and grabbed a small bit, then put it in his mouth. The reaction was instantaneous. He twisted out of his seat, then moved off screen. There was a hacking and gagging sound, followed by horrible retching noises as the man threw up off screen. The president paled, then looked toward Zorpox.

"You have three hours." Zorpox cut the link.

He turned back to Kim. "So, what do you think of my plan? I know, it's not very ambitious or flashy, but that's my plan. Oh, it's so funny. I've been having you run around for the last two weeks, concerned that some villain was going to take over the world using a satellite systems, when it didn't even exist-I mean, you couldn't create something like that in a day, or even a week. It could take months, even years-besides, why would I want to rule the world-it's too much work, I'd rather just control something simple like Bueno Nacho."

Zorpox grabbed a small box sitting on a table next to him, and pulled something out. "Now, we need to get ready for Drakken and Shego. I know they'll be back, and I want to be ready for them. And Kimberly-I want you to be dressed to kill." He laughed, holding up a dark black outfit, showing it to Kim. He handed it over. "Kimberly Ann, wear this."

Kim took it from him, then started to step into the outfit. Zorpox shook his head, exhasperated. "No, I meant change into it."

She nodded, then started to take off her shoes. Zorpox eyed her. "Wait-what are you doing?"

Kim stopped, then looked at him. "Changing."

Zorpox's eyes widened. He forgot that the mind control chip made its subject do exactly what was said, and nothing else. "Nonono-no. Not here, go to Shego's room and change into this outfit, then come back." She started off, and he grabbed her to make her pause. "Make sure you close the door, and open it back up when your done." She stood waiting to see if he had any other commands, and after seeing that he didn't, she went off to fulfill his directive. Zorpox made a mental note to update the programming on the Neural Compliance chip. He wanted her to follow his orders, but to think as well, to adapt to things.

He sat and mulled it over, and soon enough Kim came back, dressed in her new outfit. He looked at her and smiled. Kim was dressed in a night black, form fitting body suit. She was wearing black gloves, and black shoes, but it was the final touches that made him smile. On her chest, she wore a small crimson Z, reflecting the control he had over her. The small Neural Compliance chip sitting on her forehead pulsed red and black, 'his' colors.

Zorpox sat in his chair, admiring her. She really was beautiful. He loved her full red hair, her perfect green eyes, everything about her-not that he'd ever tell her. He knew she wasn't ready to face the truth...and neither was Ron. He sighed, knowing that one day things would work out. He hoped he was around to see it-if all went according to plan. He motioned her to move towards him, then looked at her, for a few brief seconds, completely serious.

The blond drew close to Kim, his eyes capturing her gaze briefly. She seemed to focus on him, despite the neural compliance chip. He watched her closely, then leaned in to whisper to her. His voice was quiet, nearly inaudible, but still distinct. "Know this, remember this, Kimberly Ann. All that I do, I do for you."

After a few brief seconds, both focusing intently on the other, Zorpox finally looked away, the moment broken. His casual demeanor returned, and he smirked, turning and swishing his cape around, then sitting back down. He had Kim sit next to him, and got settled in to wait for Shego and Drakken, but realized that he'd forgotten one thing.

He went over to his computer and prepped his defense systems. Now everything was set, and Drakken and Shego were going to have the time of their lives. He really hoped that it wouldn't be the end of their lives. He started laughing, louder and louder, until his voice rang through the hallways. This was going to be exciting.

X X X X

Shego and Drakken were both standing outside their lair, hoping to take back what was rightfully theirs-even though they _had_ stolen it originally. Wade had gotten them a ride, no questions asked, and now they were ready to go. Shego spotted a nearby ventilation shaft and used her plasma to fry the grate, then easily lifted herself in. She turned to give Drakken a hand, but he'd already crawled in behind her. _For all he is, Zorpox is good at what he does. Dr D would never have been able to do that without learning from him. _Shego looked at him and smirked. "Maybe it _is_ possible to teach old dogs new tricks. You know the plan right?"

Drakken nodded and patted his pocket. He had everything he needed to take back his lair. He still couldn't believe that Zorpox had played him like that. The caped villain should have been under his control-and then to be kicked out of his own hideout! However, when Drakken thought about what he was going to do to the buffoon, he grinned.

Shego looked at Drakken, nodded, and blasted out the grate into the inner hallway. She immediately took off for the lab, but she had barely made it a few feet before she was attacked. Small colored figures came out of the walls of the hallway and started blasting lasers at her. Shego growled at the memory of these little...creatures...that were on that kiddie show.

The green villainess blasted through a door in the hallway and threw herself through. She knew this lair better than anyone did, and knew that she could hide behind the small table in the corner. She crouched there, waiting for the little monsters to move into the room. When the first one came around the corner, she blasted it with her plasma, turning it into a molten pile of metal.

A second and third came in, and she fried them too; then they started coming in too fast for her to deal with. Her barrier started taking hits, and quickly became useless as a defense. She jumped up, planted her feet on the desk, and dived over the robots and out into hall. She spun and torched the ones in the doorway, then quickly dashed down the corridor.

She took immense pleasure in being able to blast them, frying all of the little robots in the hall. She jumped up, caught a pipe in the ceiling, and used it to spin her forward over a line of the little creeps. She landed and swept her leg out, knocking them hard into a wall. Unfortunately, more of the little things jumped on her while she was down and tried to pin her to the floor. She slashed with her claws and shredded them, grinning maliciously as they sparked and twitched. She watched as the last one tried to run away from her. She pointed a finger at it, and watched as the plasma shot out and disintegrated it. Shego knew that couldn't be all of Zorpox's traps, so she warily continued forward.

The villainess had only taken a few steps past the scarred crater where the last robot was when she heard creaking under her feet. She had just enough time to look down before the floor gave out underneath her. The dark haired villainess managed to get a handhold on the edge of the floor and pull herself back up. She turned and looked down, way down, to a floor that was littered with spikes. Shego was really starting to hate Zorpox. She stepped away from the floor, and watched as it closed with a small click.

She continued down the hall, and had just reached a small turn in the hall when she heard a roaring noise behind her. She whirled, only to freeze when she saw what made the noise. A huge wall of water was crashing down the corridor right at her. She had enough time to yell out Zorpox's name before the water carried her away.

X X X X

Meanwhile, Drakken crawled through the air ducts, making his way to the lab. _His_ lab. _Shego was right, I never should have trusted him-but he is very, very good at this. _Even as he was thinking this, Dr D came across another trap in the vents. He'd already disabled two of them, so it was getting pretty easy to beat this particular trap. A cross section of laser beams cut across the air vent, barring passage. Drakken pulled out the Kimmunicator that he had gotten from Kim's tech friend and plugged it into the laser grid. He was quickly able to pull up a diagnostic on the lasers and temporarily shut them down. He crawled through, and within seconds the lasers came back on.

He turned the next corner, and was surprised to see something strange. The entire section in front of him had a weird blue glow. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small bolt that he had been using to build something. He tossed it out onto the panel and was surprised when a giant bolt of electricity sparked out. He quickly shied back and let out a small yelp. That wasn't good.

Unfortunately, Drakken hadn't brought along anything that could help with this, so he had to stop and think. He could try to cut power, but that would mean leaving the vent and possibly being caught. He could try to go around, but that could take a lot of time, especially since he would have to backtrack through that last laser grid. He spent valuable seconds running through options in his head, all of them having their flaws.

He stopping thinking for a second and tried to sit up, but banged his head on the ceiling. He growled, but then got an idea. The walls were really tight in here...so maybe he could use that. He placed his hands on the side of the vent, then pulled his feet up and pressed them on the side. He was supported above the electric floor-but just barely. Slowly, he moved his way forward, and had just reached the halfway point when his arms started to shake. _This is Shego's job, not mine-I come up with the plans, she does the physical work. _Even as he was thinking this, he pressed forward until he was just a few feet from the end. Then, his hand slipped.

* * *

_**A/N** Yeah, couldn't resist ending this on a cliffie. Actually, this chapter and the next two were all part of a single chapter, but I had to divide them up because of length. I figured you all wouldn't want to read a 20,000+ word chapter._


	20. So It Begins

_**A/N** One chapter to go..._

_Thanks to Eddy13 for beta checking._

* * *

**Chapter 20: So It Begins...**

The water hit Shego with the force of a tidal wave. She was swept off her feet and carried down the hallway. The villainess went nearly twenty feet down the corridor before she was able to grab a hold of an open door. She hung on for dear life, until the water completely covered her head. Fortunately, Shego was in peak shape, and able to hold her breath for quiet a while. She knew she needed to get out of this hallway quickly, so she released the door and let herself be carried downstream. She was just getting comfortable with being underwater when she heard something behind her. She pivoted in the water and looked back the way she had came. Shego felt her heart jump into her throat.

Three dark shapes moved in the water toward her, no doubt attracted by her movement. As soon as they got closer, she realized that her original thought was correct. Sharks. Shego knew that she could use her plasma power to keep the sharks away, but then she wouldn't be able to pay attention to where she was. Instead, she turned around and swam away from the sharks.

She traveled down the hall, past doors that were open, closed, and even a few floating in the corridor, ripped off their hinges. She tried to avoid all of the things floating in the water, and managed remarkably well. Unfortunately, she didn't miss everything.

Drakken didn't use all of his lair all the time; he used a lot of his extra space to store parts and scrap metal. It was some of that scrap metal that had gotten out of one of the storage rooms and was floating all in the water. One of the pieces caught a current and swept up, tracing a scarlet line on her cheek. A second piece swept into her thigh, and cut a little deeper.

Shego was shocked by the sudden pain, but quickly forced it down. She had been hurt much worse before, so she was easily able to ignore the injuries. Less easy to ignore were the sharks.

At catching the scent of blood in the water, the predators behind her surged forward. Shego quickly rolled herself sideways, and pulled her feet in, just missing the jaws of the shark. She swam forward, trying to distance herself from the sharks. She rounded a corner in the hallway, and spotted the door that she needed to go into. It was a reinforced steel door, set with a palm lock on the side. She could burn through the doors, but it would take nearly a minute, and she didn't have that time with the sharks behind her.

She swam past the door, hoping that she could find a way to double back. She decided that her best option would be to stop the sharks. She tried blasting the walls to get debris to cover the hallway, but it just came off in small chunks. She tried to think up another plan, when the hallway abruptly turned. She easily swept around it, but the sharks had a harder time. This bought her valuable seconds as she watched them fight to get around the corner. She turned back around, and spotted the window only a second before she hit it.

The impact stunned her, but she recovered quickly. The water was still running quickly, so there must be a way out. She looked around, until she spotted a bunch of tiny holes in the floor and walls-drains. She knew there was no way she could get through that quickly. She looked down the hall, and watched as the three sharks finally got around the corner and came straight at her.

This was not good.

X X X X

This was not good.

Drakken felt his hand slipping, and tried to recover, but even as he reset his right hand, he felt his left hand slide. With a slight scream, Drakken dropped, expecting to be fried as he hit the bottom of the vent. He dropped hard, and squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for the immense pain. Instead, he got a slight jolt as he laid there.

"Wha-?" Drakken mumbled as he looked around. Had he missed the electrical floor? A quick look around showed that he was still a couple of feet from the end of the vent section. Why hadn't he been fried?

That's when Drakken realized his stupidity. He had only checked to see if there was electricity running though the vent; he hadn't bothered to check and see if it could kill him. The vent had only been running with a low amperage, so it wasn't lethal. It did, however, make a very good light show. If Drakken had crawled through, he would have just gotten a mild jolt; instead, he ended up wasting a lot of time.

Drakken quickly crawled down the shaft to the end, and turned the last corner. Right in front of him was the last section before his lab. He could see a vent at the end, and knew that it opened up to his lab. He started to crawl forward, but stopped. If he had learned anything from Zorpox, it was to analyze every situation. He peered carefully forward, and spotted a nearly microscopic trip wire. He moved forward, and carefully went over the wire, but as he put his hand down, he heard a clicking sound.

It was then Drakken realized he had made a mistake again. He held himself still and looked at the wire-it wasn't even attached to anything, it was just hanging there. It was a decoy. He looked at where he put his hand down, and saw a small pressure pad. If he spread his weight around at all, the change in pressure would make something activate. Drakken slowly reached into his pouch and pulled out the Kimmunicator.

He lowered it to the pressure pad and hit a small button. A scanning beam came out from the Kimmunicator and analyzed the pad. It seemed that it was attached to something in the wall. He tried to reach over and pop open the wall cover, but wasn't able to reach it. He didn't know what was there, but he knew that there was no way that he would be able to disarm the pressure pad without setting it off.

As he looked at the pressure pad, he could tell that he couldn't disarm it, but maybe he could delay it. He pulled a wire out of the Kimmunicator and connected it to the wire leading to the wall. He knew that this would only give him about three seconds, but he hoped that would be enough. He looked down, got himself ready, and hit the button on the Kimmunicator.

As soon as he heard the confirmation beep, he pulled his hand off the pad and dashed back the way he came. He had barely gotten to the end of the vent before he heard a low 'whump' behind him. He turned and looked over his should and groaned. The entire center of the shaft was covered in blue paint. Drakken was sure that Zorpox was laughing his head off somewhere in the lair.

He quickly crawled forward and grabbed the Kimmunicator, wiped it off, and made his way to the vent at the end. He peered out of it, but couldn't see anyone. He knew what the plan was, and was surprised that Shego wasn't there yet. She was one of the best people she had seen at infiltrating a building, and she should be here by now; unless Zorpox had delayed her. _Or killed her _a part of his mind said.

If Zorpox hadn't set lethal traps in his vents, it was unlikely that Shego had run into anything dangerous. Zorpox must have just done something that kept her occupied. She would show up any minute. Stroll through the door. Anytime now..._Shego, where are you?_

X X X X

At that very moment, Shego was facing off with three sharks. She quickly ran through her options and decided that she had one chance. She waited, watched as they got closer and closer, and then moved at the last second. She kicked off the glass and pivoted sideways, and the first shark passed her, followed quickly by the second. The third shark tried to turn and bite her, but she barely shot through its mouth before it closed.

The first shark hit the glass with a loud 'thud,' and when she heard the second one hit, she swore she could hear a cracking sound. The third shark impacted hard enough that all three sharks were catapulted out the window. The sudden out rush of water nearly carried her out the window too, but she was able to grab a hold of a nearby edge to keep steady.

All the water was carried out the window, and it finally slowed to a trickle. Shego went over to the ledge and peeked out, looking down and expecting to see the sharks on the rocks below. Instead, she saw three small fins circling just off shore, and growled at them. She stepped back from the window and looked down at herself. Soaked, bruised, and bleeding in two places, Shego hadn't had this many injuries since she was a still a hero; and she was a lot more experienced now. She trekked back through the hallway and finally made her way to the door to the lab.

The original plan called for Shego to hot wire the door and sneak in quietly. She was way past stealth. She blew the doors off their hinges, and watched as they spiraled and flipped into the room. She crept in cautiously, knowing that Zorpox must have heard that. She stopped when she heard a voice above her.

"Bravo, Shego, Bravo." Zorpox clapped mockingly from an upper platform.

"Enough of this, Zorpox." Shego stared with fury at the smug villain.

"Enough? Shego, my dear, I'm just getting started." He laughed loudly. "Besides, you don't seem in any condition to fight; you look more like a drowned rat."

"Come down here and I'll show you I can still fight."

Zorpox stepped forward and looked down at her, smirking. "Surrender now, and I'll make you my mind controlled slave."

Shego glared at him. "I don't really see the upside to surrendering."

"Too bad. Oh well, maybe he can help you see the upside...or downside." Zorpox motioned behind her, and Shego turned, ready to face off with her opponent. She turned, then blanched. She looked up...and up..."You remember Mr Sit Down, don't you, Shego?" She stepped back, her movements uncertain. She remembered the giant creature all right. She wouldn't let herself be cowed, however.

The villainess turned to snarl up at him."Can't beat me with your little traps, can you, Zorpox? Just gotta keep going bigger and bigger, don't you. Just like Drakken-you think that just because it's bigger, it's better."

Zorpox shrugged. "Yeah, you're right, I probably could have gone with something smaller..." Then he grinned maliciously. "But I have to admit, it was worth it to see your face. Haven't seen you that scared since I threatened to fry you in the cafeteria." A green burst of energy exploded near him, but he didn't budge-instead he chuckled. "I think you've got bigger things to worry about than me, Shego." She turned to the giant creature, to watch as it...well, as it tried to sit on her. She dove out of the way.

For its size, it could move fairly quickly. Shego easily stayed away from it, until its eyes began glowing, then firing lasers at her. Her anger kicked in, and she did something either brave or fool hearty-she charged the monstrosity. She fired a burst of plasma at it, and it blew off a chunk of the thing's leg, revealing robot parts underneath. She fired again and again, dodging rapidly, but each hit was nothing more than a paper cut to the giant. Twenty, thirty, forty hits, it just kept coming.

"At the rate you're going, Shego, it'll take you all night. Do you need me to call a time out so you can catch your breath?" She didn't even turn to face him. He continued. "Need five minutes? Ten? Of course, Kim would've already taken him out by now." Zorpox was forced to duck as a burst of plasma almost took his head off. Her accuracy was getting better.

She fired two shots that forced the machine backwards, then turned to snarl at him. "Kim would've already foiled you plot and took the buffoon back to Middleton by now. Face it, Zorpox, you're no better than Drakken-you've just been lucky. Pretty soon, that luck's gonna run out." She turned back to her giant foe, and rushed toward him, then slipped around the side. She jumped up and planted her feet against its leg, pushing off toward the wall.

From there, she used her glowing claws to get a little purchase, then pushed off again, finally getting high enough to reach its shoulder. She dug her claws into the joint, then managed to cut a hole large enough to fit in. She dropped inside the machine, and few seconds later, plasma began shooting out at all angles. Finally a blast completely incinerated its head, leaving a four-foot gaping hole between the shoulders. There was a screeching of metal, and the yellow robot fell forward, smashing into the ground.

Shego rolled out of the hole where the head had been, then stood, hands glowing, her breath coming in short, ragged gasps. Her plasma power took a lot of energy; so many blasts in rapid succession had tired her out, as it was, her hands were rapidly flashing on and off. After a few seconds she got her breathing under control-it would be extremely embarrassing to hyperventilate and pass out in front of Zorpox. She just hoped the she had finally taken care of the last of his toys-she didn't know how much more she could handle.

Unfortunately, Zorpox was still smiling.

"My offer still stands-"

"Oh cork it, Zorpox. You really think I'm going to ever just surrender to you? What've you got next? Flying hummingbirds? Maybe a synthodrone or two? I can handle anything you can throw at me."

"Oh, really? No synthodrones, I have something much better..." He raised his hands, motioning to someone standing in the shadows. Kim stepped forward, her eyes blank, and looked down at Shego. Her dark outfit gave her a sinister look that Shego never associated with Kim. The green woman's eyes traveled to Kim's forehead and spotted the neural compliance chip planted there.

Zorpox turned to Kim and smiled. "Kimberly Ann...deal with Shego."

Kim jumped down from the upper walkway and advanced toward her foe. Shego dropped into a fighting stance, and prepared herself for a difficult fight. Kim launched herself forward and kicked toward Shego's head, then tried to sweep her legs out. Shego blocked the first attack and flipped forward over Kim's feet, and tried to knock her out with a hand strike to the head. Kim blocked and struck out with a flat palm to Shego's chest.

Shego fell backward and looked up as Kim jumped into the air. She rolled to the side and came up on one knee, just barely getting an arm up to block the flying kick. Shego quickly backed up as Kim threw a number of fast attacks and fakes. Shego realized that she was being pushed closer and closer to a wall, so she decided to go on the offensive.

Shego launched her own flurry of quick attacks, hoping that one might get through. Even as she was attacking, she was blocking Kim's repeated attacks. Finally, a kick got through the teen's defenses. Kim lost her balance and fell backward, but was easily able to roll with the fall and come up to her feet. She stopped and looked at Shego, ready for her attack.

During this fight, Drakken had been watching from his vent, and realized that Kim was in the perfect position for their plan. He had already unscrewed the vent, so he kick it out. He jumped out even before it hit the ground. There was a loud banging as the grate hit the upper level, and both Kim and Shego looked up as they heard the noise, watching as Drakken landed and staggered at the fall.

Zorpox stood with his arms crossed, looking in amusement at Dr Drakken. "I wondered when you'd show up. I suppose you're the distraction?"

"No, I'm here to end you plans." Drakken sneered at the caped villain and pulled out the Kimmunicator. He quickly pointed it at Kim and pushed the special button added by Wade and the twins. A small beam shot out from the Kimmunicator and hit Kim...and nothing happened. Drakken stared in confusion then banged the Kimmunicator on the railing.

"Oh, does your silicon phase disruptor not work? I'm sorry, that chip isn't made with silicon." As Drakken stared open mouthed, Zorpox looked down to Shego. "Well, there it is my dear-the one feature of Selenium that was key to my plan-Selenium isn't Silicon...and is thus immune to the Silicon Phase Disruptor." As the villainess fought against Kim, she mentally kicked herself-she'd missed the most obvious of clues!

Zorpox reached out with his left hand and hit a control pad nearby. Instantly metal bars dropped from the ceiling and boxed Drakken in. "Why don't you just sit and watch as the ladies fight things out?" He strolled away from the fight and wandered over to a giant computer with all sorts of screens and buttons.

Shego knew that things had just gone from bad to worse. The already difficult plan A had failed, so it was time for plan B-Shego would have to get the chip off Kim herself. She also had to stop Zorpox from whatever he was doing. She had just enough time to think this before Kim sprang into action again. Shego back flipped, just missing taking a kick to the stomach.

She quickly fought back, hoping that she could land a hit to Kim's head and destroy the chip. Instead, all of her attacks were quickly blocked, and Shego wasn't quite fast enough to avoid the red head's counter. The uppercut knocked her off her feet and stunned her. Kim walked forward and stood confidently above Shego. That confidence disappeared when the villainess swept her feet out, tripped the teen up. Kim was back up in a flash, and Shego mirrored her movements.

Shego realized that Kim was protecting her head more than the rest of her body, so she launched a couple of attacks she hoped would lower her guard. Finally she saw her opportunity, and swiped her glowing hand forward, catching the chip on Kim's forehead. It sparked and came off in two pieces, hit the ground and rolled.

The villainess looked at Kim and spoke to her. "Kimmie, I need you're help with Zorp-" Shego was cut off abruptly as Kim kicked her twice, once to the stomach and once to the head. She landed on her back, and briefly saw stars, so she shook her head to clear it. The villainess staggered to her feet and glared hatefully at Kim. "What the heck do you think you're doing!" Shego was livid, and her hands were glowing dangerously.

She shot out toward Kim, who just barely manage to avoid the blast. Shego continued to fire plasma at Kim, who started flipping and dodging all over the room. Shego fired repeatedly, but paused when she heard Zorpox laughing. He had walked back to the railing and was staring down at the battle.

"Boo-Yah-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! Why use only one mind control chip when you can use two. You thought you could beat me, but I'm three moves ahead." Zorpox knew that he still had time to work on his plan, so he turned around and went back to his supercomputer.

Shego turned back to Kim and realized that she still had the vapid look that she had been wearing the entire fight. Shego went closer to Kim, and both foes circled each other. It was then that the nearly forgotten Drakken spotted something. "Shego-behind her ear!"

Shego was starting to get tired, after all of Zorpox's traps, her repeated plasma barrages, and now the fight with Kim. She knew that she needed to finish this fight quickly. She decided to use her secret weapon. She unzipped the small pocket on the side of her leg, and started to reach in. Kim saw the move and launched herself at the villainess, and both of them went to the ground. The red head grabbed her foe's wrists and pinned her to the floor. It was then that Shego's secret weapon was revealed.

A small little creature poked its head out of Shego's pocket. Rufus had been roughly shoved into the pouch, and after the wild ride through the hallway, he was not a happy camper. He started chittering angrily, until he noticed the look on Kim's face. He knew exactly what he had to do, and made a fast leap up onto Kim's head. He quickly twisted down and bit into the second mind control chip. Instantly there was a change.

Kim released Shego and jumped to her feet. "Ron!" She was more angry than she had ever been before, and even Shego was shocked.

"Now, now, Kimberly Ann, it's Zorpox now. Ron's not here, would you like to leave a message? Not that he'll ever get it." Zorpox snarled at her. He stood at the computer and looked toward the exit.

"C'mon, Princess, let's go." Shego quickly ran forward and jumped hard, flipped and landed on the upper platform. She had effectively cut off Zorpox's only path of escape. Kim dashed in the other direction, and jumped up onto some nearby boxes. From there, she front flipped over the railing and landed right in front of Zorpox.

Kim glared at Zorpox. "Give it up, Ron, you don't even have Shego to fight for you this time."

The caped villain flared up. "Zorpox! Zorpox! I'm not your goofy, cowardly sidekick. And I don't need Shego to fight for me." Even as he was talking, Shego was working her way behind him, until she had finally gotten close enough. She dashed forward, arms out, ready to take down the blue sidekick. What happened next no one expected.

Kim watched as Shego came up behind Zorpox, and waited for her to knock him to the ground. Instead, Shego was suddenly face down, moaning. Kim blinked, then reviewed what had happened. Zorpox had neatly sidestepped and brought his knee into Shego's stomach. He had then punched her in the jaw and swept her feet back. To finish the move, as she fell, a hand on her back drove her into the ground. Shego just laid there, unable to get to her feet.

The teen was shocked. Shego was the most dangerous person Kim knew-and Zorpox had stopped the villainess without even trying. Zorpox leaned over her. "Really stupid, Shego...but kinda fun to watch." He laughed and went back over to his controls, ignoring both of the ladies as he punched up another sequence of commands. Kim took this opportunity to bend over and look at Shego.

Shego had blacked out when she slammed into the ground, and was just opening her eyes. She looked up with blurry eyes to see Kim bending over her. Her first instinct was to attack, but then she remembered where she was. Kim reached down to help her up, but Shego brushed the hand away. She stood up slowly and turned to Zorpox.

Her face was blank, but Shego was radiating anger. She clenched and unclenched her fists, and they started to glow, only to stop, then start glowing again. She was more angry than Kim had ever seen her, and yet it looked like Shego was trying to control her anger. Shego's voice had gone eerily quiet as she addressed Zorpox. "This ends now."

"Yes, it does-but not how you think..." Zorpox smirked, then hit a small button on the computer. An orange shield appeared between him and the other two. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have business to attend to." Shego let out an angry roar and fired at the shield, but the shots just bounced off.

Zorpox hit another control on the computer, and one of the giant screens flared to life. A middle-aged man in a business suit appeared on the screen. "Weeeelllll?" Zorpox questioned the man.

"Uh...um, we agree to your terms. We're turning over control of Bueno Nacho to you." The man looked terrified and defeated.

"Good; you will, of course, still run the company on a day to day basis-but now I can get free food anytime I want, riiiight?" Zorpox licked his lips at the though of all those Naco's.

"Uh sure, sure." The president was confused-but keeping his job in exchange for giving one guy free food seemed like a good deal. "Whatever you want, boss."

Zorpox flipped a switch, and the man disappeared. He then turned to his captured foes. "See, I win-you've failed, so you can give up now." Zorpox smirked at the befuddled looks on both of the ladies.

"You-you've won?" Kim was confused-she never lost. Then she smiled. "I may have lost, but I can still win if I get Ron back. Give it up, Zorpox, we won't let you leave here."

"Who says I want to leave...the fun's just beginning." Zorpox said with a sinister air. He spoke to the computer. "Begin program Twilight."

The computer's voice (which Kim thought sounded eerily like her own) issued from speakers in the lab. "Beginning program 'Twilight'. Initiating directive Final Doom. Total security lock down initiated. Self destruct countdown to commence. T-minus 30 minutes and counting. There will be one more audio warning at five minutes."

Zorpox grinned at the two ladies. "I have all I need, I don't need this lair anymore. Here's the deal-give up, and I'll shut off the self destruct. I do hope I've given you enough time to decide."

"Enough time to get you." Shego snarled. She considered his position and wondered if Kim was ready to attack. She still wasn't sure how to get past the shield to Zorpox.

"You can't escape, all of the doors are closed-the only way out is through this hatch." Zorpox pushed a button on the wall, and a nearly invisible panel opened. "I could leave, but then I wouldn't see you surrender." The caped villain stood with his arms crossed, waiting for the inevitable.

Meanwhile, Rufus had been running around the lab trying to figure out some way to help. All the buttons were set up to require a certain amount of pressure, and he was too light to push them in. He tried to get Drakken released, but wasn't able to do anything. Then the mad doctor spotted him. "Hey you little weas-er mole rat. Connect this to the computer." Drakken passed the Kimmunicator out to him.

Rufus gave a salute and rushed over to connect it in. He tried to punch up the button on the Kimmunicator that would create a link with Wade, but it wouldn't light up. He started squeaking loudly hoping that someone could help.

Kim heard the noises that Rufus was making, and quickly realized what was going on. She tapped Shego on the shoulder, and pointed to Rufus. Shego instantly figured out what Kim wanted, and turned, firing plasma at a small contraption in the corner of the room. It sparked, then exploded, and they turned to see if it worked. Wade's face appeared on the computer's screen.

"That shut down the jamming. I'm in, but it looks like Zorpox has updated Drakken's security."

Kim groaned. "Why am I not surprised."

"I don't know if I can stop the self destruct. I'll work as fast as I can. I should be able to..." He hit a couple of buttons, and the bars around Drakken withdrew-unfortunately, he was across the room; besides, he wasn't very helpful in a fight anyway.

Wade tapped a few more keys, then shook his head. "I can't lower the shield, it's keyed to Zorpox." He decided to focus on the self destruct. At the same time, he started a download of all of Zorpox systems, and was surprised at the number of files.

Kim realized that if Wade couldn't lower the shield, it was up to her to find a way. "Shego, where's the power come from in this room?"

Drakken heard her and pointed to the floor. "I run power through the room in an energy net-after your buffoon kept destroying my lab, I needed to decentralize the power."

"Is there any way to cut the power?" Kim looked at Drakken hopefully.

Shego looked at Kim "Are you serious? He spread the power so we can't cut it off."

Drakken looked at Shego. "Wait a minute. If we have your tech guy send a power surge through the computer systems, it might disrupt the power for a few seconds. Then we can destroy his shield generator."

"Think you can hit it?" Kim asked Shego.

Shego looked at her haughtily. "What do _you_ think, Princess."

"Well, you never hit me..."

Shego looked at her with narrowed eyes. "You move around a lot more."

Kim let it slide and changed the subject. "I...um, I don't want to hurt Ron, so don't use your plasma on him."

"He's dangerous, we can't take the chance that he'll get away." She looked at Kim's face, and growled. "Fine-but I still think that might be the only way to stop him."

Kim didn't like it, but nodded. She turned to the computer screen and looked at Wade. "Ready?" He indicated he was. "Hit it."

The lights in the lair flickered, then all power cut out. Kim saw a brief green glow, then watched as green plasma hit the console that controlled the shield. It sparked, and then the power came back on; but the glow from the shield was missing-it was down.

Kim moved in front of her best friend, and Shego moved behind him. Kim expected to see an angry glare, but instead, he had a slight half smile. Completely ignoring them, he looked at the countdown on the computer screen. "Three minutes, forty-eight seconds...not bad."

"I'm through with your tricks, Zorpox." Shego moved directly behind him, and adopted a fighting stance; she wouldn't be caught off guard this time.

The villain grinned. This was going to be interesting.

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_**A/N **Yes, I'm ending it here for now. Why? To save the best for last, of course, wouldn't want my last chapter to just be a simple epilogue, now would I?_


	21. A Shocking End

_**A/N** Last chapter, and the conclusion to this little tale. Unfortunately, my sequel, Twilight, is going to be delayed just a bit, but hopefully I'll get around to writing more on it; I've been focused on other random ideas that have hit. Curse the plot bunnies._

_As always, my appreciation to Eddy13 for his beta checking._

* * *

Chapter 21: A Shocking End

Kim made a quick move forward, to distract Zorpox, while Shego jumped at him from behind, obviously trying to catch him off guard. He spun quickly and grabbed her hands, placed a foot in her stomach, and rolled backward. He kicked out, and Shego sailed through the air. The villainess went straight toward the railing, but righted herself; she placed her feet on the railing and back flipped over Zorpox's head.

The caped villain wasn't focusing on Shego, but rather Kim. As soon as he had launched Shego, Kim had attacked quickly, hoping to catch him unaware. He stepped back and blocked two of Kim's attacks and dodged a third. Then, he went down on one knee, and Shego's kick from behind went over his head. He kicked back, and caught his green foe's planted leg; she dropped forward on her stomach. She blasted at Zorpox from her prone position, but he wasn't there anymore.

He had already back flipped over Shego, and was standing there looking at his two foes. The green villainess got to her feet and looked at Kim. The red head rushed forward right at her foe, like she was going to attack him. Just before she got close, she flipped forward over his head. Zorpox half turned, and almost missed Shego's attack.

He raised a forearm to block the kick, then pivoted and blocked Kim's kick from behind. He leaned back, and her second kick sailed over his head. Shego tried to sweep out his feet, but he back flipped over them. Kim backed up, then started to run toward Zorpox. The villainess kicked toward him, hoping to distract him, but he knew what he was doing. He flipped over her head, then kicked her in the back, right in Kim's path. They both went down in a tangle of arms and legs.

Shego groaned, then got up. Zorpox was much more dangerous than she had thought. She looked toward Kim, thinking of their earlier conversation. Her teenage foe looked back at her and nodded sadly. If they were going to stop the caped villain, they couldn't hold anything back-that meant that Ron was going to get hurt.

Kim moved toward her target's right, and Shego mirrored her movements to the left. Zorpox rushed forward and slid on the ground, sweeping out Shego's legs. He quickly whipped his foot around, and kicked her as she fell. She sailed backward into some nearby boxes. Seconds later, she had blasted them all into dust, and dashed back into the fray.

Shego was starting to lose her temper again, and began attacking faster and more erratically. She faked a kick toward Zorpox's head, then tried to nail his ribs. He reacted quickly, stepping back and forcing her leg sideways. She recovered quickly, and tried to spin and sweep his legs out, but he jumped over her attack.

He planted one hand on the ground, and kicked out with his foot, knocking Kim on her back. Finally Shego got in a lucky hit, and knocked Zorpox's hand out from under him; however instead of landing on his face, he instantly tucked and rolled forward right beside Kim. She had risen to one knee, and took the opportunity she had been given. She pounced, pinning her best friend's hands to the ground.

Zorpox tried to worm out, but her grip was too strong. Kim couldn't help but stare at the brown eyes in front of her, and she saw brief confusion and conflict. Then it was gone, and Kim felt herself flying backwards. She hit the wall and slid down, stunned.

Shego took this opportunity to try and blast Zorpox in the back. Normally she wouldn't attack a foe from behind, but decided to make an exception. He had just climbed to his feet, but somehow he knew the attack was coming, and dived forward, just missing the shot. He rolled sideways as Shego fired again and again, then she jumped into the air, hoping to get him from above. She fired plasma at him, then dropped toward him.

The caped villain pushed himself up and rolled forward, just as Shego landed where his head had been. He twirled and blocked a low kick, then raised his forearm against a second attack. Instead of a kick, however, Shego raked her claws forward, trying to catch Zorpox's wrist controller. He saw his mistake, and pulled his hand back, leaving his face unguarded.

He turned his face to try and avoid the blow, but was only partially successful. Shego's claws raked into his face, tracing four bloody lines across his cheek. It wasn't deep, but it was the first injury Zorpox had sustained. Shego grinned. "Not as invincible as you think, are you?"

The villainess watched as her foe raised a hand to his cheek, and dabbed at the blood. He pulled his hand away and stared at the red on his fingertips. Kim had finally gotten up, and walked over to stand by Shego. "I know you're still in there, Ron, fight him."

The blue skinned villain smiled faintly and tapped the side of his head. "Oh yes, he's here...giving me a heck of a fight. Sorry Kimberly, but I'm in complete control."

Kim knew that wasn't true; Zorpox had been distracted, she knew Ron was fighting. Maybe that would be enough to help them win. "Ron, I need your help. I need you to be the distraction one more time. We can't do this without you."

"I-" She watched him hesitate, confusion and conflict evident on his face. While he was distracted, Kim motioned with her hand, and Shego acted quickly. She fired plasma as Zorpox's chest, hitting him dead center. He flew backward and laid on the ground, still. Shego walked forward, and glanced down at the caped villain. "I think I hit him hard enough to knock him out, but not kill him." She turned and looked at Kim.

"Good, let's get him out of here before this place blows up. Wade, how long?" She turned to the computer.

"Only about seven minutes. Kim, I can't crack his codes, but I did download his entire database. If this code is typical of his security, it'll take me months to crack his encryption." Wade was frustrated; he never came across anything like this. "I can get all the doors open, though."

Kim grabbed the Kimmunicator from the port it was plugged into, then stuck it in her pocket. She turned around, and saw Shego bending over Zorpox, no doubt figuring out the best way to pick him up. The villainess leaned down to stare at his chest, and suddenly jerked her head back. It was too little, too late. Zorpox's kick dropped Shego, and this time she was out cold.

The blond got to his feet, and now Kim could see where Shego's shot had hit. In the center of the blackened hole, Kim spotted a metal plate-he'd been wearing body armor. Zorpox looked down at the unconscious villainess and chuckled. "She never was very good at sensing my traps." Now he looked at her. "Surrender, you know you can't beat me."

Kim walked up to him and tried to reason with him. "Come on, Ron, we need to get out of here before this place blows up. We can leave, and continue this later."

"No." Zorpox stood with his arms crossed.

"We have to get out of here now! If I have to hurt you to save you, I will."

Kim moved forward slowly, unsure of what Zorpox was going to do. She got close, and kicked out, but the villain blocked the kick. She attacked again, with a punch, but this time her friend stepped in and grabbed her arm. He twisted and flipped her, but she went with the throw and landed on her feet. Kim brought her elbow forward and tried to hit Zorpox, so he released her arm and twisted, and the attack missed. The twist threw him off balance, and Kim kicked out, catching the caped villain in the chest. He staggered back, slightly unsteadily.

Kim stepped forward and drove a knee into Zorpox stomach. He doubled over, but managed to get a hand up to block the red head's kick to his face. He caught her foot and gave a tug, and his friend fell to the ground. She looked up at Zorpox and saw that he was going to try and pin her down. She brought her feet up, rolled backward, and went into a handstand, then pushed off, springing to her feet. The blue teen stepped forward and pressed the attack.

While Kim and Zorpox were fighting all over the lair, Drakken had made his way around the upper level to Shego. She was unconscious, with a nasty welt beginning to form above her right eye. He tried shaking her awake, but she was out cold. He knew that they wouldn't be of any more use to Kim, so he scooped Shego up, and headed over to the escape hatch.

He jumped in, and they both slid down the tube. When they reached the bottom, Drakken tumbled out into the sunlight, and looked around. He spotted a hovercraft nearby, no doubt the one that Zorpox was going to use to escape. Drakken again picked up Shego, and took her over to the machine.

He strapped her in, then started the hovercraft; fortunately, it looked like it hadn't been rigged with any traps. He tried to decide what lair to go to, in case Zorpox wasn't stopped, and realized that his lair in the north pole was probably his best choice. It could access info from his other lairs, but it was cut off so that Zorpox couldn't take control of it as easily.

As Drakken headed off to his lair, he started thinking about a new plan to take over the world. It was then that the idea for his best plan ever hit. It still needed a little work, but he should be able to figure things out. First things first...he needed to do some research. His last idle thought before settle in for the long ride was wondering if he would have to deal with Kim Possible again.

As Kim thought about her next move, she realized that Zorpox was holding back. None of the attacks that he had used were all that dangerous, and he'd been a lot more aggressive with Shego. She wondered if maybe Ron _was_ fighting him. She didn't have much time to think as Zorpox attacked again.

She defended herself, but not easily. Zorpox was as fast as Shego, and he knew Kim's skills as well as his own. It took everything Kim had to just keep up with her foe's attacks, so she wasn't able to try and stop him. Finally, she saw an opening, and kicked the villain, giving her a few seconds breathing room. She tried to figure out what he'd do next, but was at a lost.

Zorpox took advantage of Kim's hesitation and pulled out his small laser. He set it to stun, and fired at Kim. Fortunately he missed-she dived sideways, but the laser hit the computer behind her. It overloaded, and started sparking, sending electricity crackling all over the screen and consoles. Zorpox ignored it, then turned and tried to track her across the room. His actions seemed delayed, however, and all of his attacks missed.

The red head flipped forward and landed near Zorpox, and kicked the laser out of his hand. She wasn't expecting him to counter with a back fist to her face. She fell back, stunned. Zorpox quickly grabbed his laser and stood over her. "I'm sorry, Kimberly, but this is the way it has to be." He lowered the laser and pointed it at her chest. Kim waited for the shot, but it never came.

Zorpox looked down at her, intense conflict on his face. He tried to fire, but wasn't able to. Kim looked up and grimaced. "I'm sorry, Ron..." She pulled her legs into her chest, and kicked out as hard as she could. She hoped it would be enough to stall him; instead, the caped villain sailed backward, right into the malfunctioning computer. Kim stared in horror as he was electrocuted. "Ron, no..." she whispered.

Ron was lit up, electricity spiraling around him. His hair was standing up, and his mouth was open in a wordless yell. Kim watched as Ron's face changed colors, from blue, to normal, to blue and back again. The bracelet around his wrist flared up and burst, sending pieces everywhere. Finally, the electricity cut out, and he dropped to his knees, smoke rising from his clothes. "K...KP..." was all he could say before he fell on his face.

Kim rushed over, and rolled him on his back. She dropped her head to his chest, and nearly collapsed with relief when she heard a heartbeat. She looked at her Kimmunicator, and saw that she had only a minute to get out. The red head quickly grabbed Ron and lifted him over her shoulder. She looked around for Rufus, and spotted him rushing toward her. As soon as he had dashed into her pocket, she took off for the escape hatch, tossing Ron down it and diving in herself. They both went down the tube and rolled out the hole at the bottom.

The red haired teen looked up, and watched as the lair exploded. She quickly pulled Ron under a nearby ledge, and watched as the flaming debris hit the ground. She pulled out the Kimmunicator and signaled Wade. "Wade, I need a ride fast. Ron was electrocuted, and I don't know what that might have done to him. I need to get him to a hospital as fast as possible."

"Um..." Wade consulted his screens. "GJ has an experimental jet in the area, it can get you to Middleton in under ten minutes. It should be landing now." Sure enough, Kim saw a small VTOL landing a few feet away. She grabbed Ron and dashed into the plane, and as soon as she was inside, she yelled at the pilot to go.

X X X X

The ride was short and uneventful, but it seemed to take a lifetime. Twice Ron's breathing stopped, but started back up again. She knew that she couldn't have done anything differently, but she still wondered if she might have killed her best friend. Finally they arrived at the Middleton Hospital, and Kim dragged Ron out of the plane. Her mother was waiting outside, and Ron was transferred to a stretcher.

Kim's mom sent Ron ahead, then turned to Kim. "He's going to be all right, Kimmie." Kim wanted to be with Ron, but knew that she would just be in the way. She wrapped her arms around her mother and started tearing up, and her mother led her inside. She took Kim to another room to take care of her injuries and give her a chance to settle down. Ann laid her daughter out, and after cleaning her scrapes, walked out to the cafeteria to get her some fruit.

When she came back, her daughter was already asleep, the day's exhaustion finally catching up to her. She looked down at Kim, and saw the stress she was under, even asleep. She wouldn't relax until she could see Ron, okay and awake. Ann brushed some hair out of Kim's face and left.

Ann knew that she had to check on Ron, but first called home. Her husband answered and put the phone on speaker after realizing who was calling. The Possible house was filled, with the Stoppables, Monique, and Felix all waiting for information. Ann gave them as much info as she could, and told them that she would have more when they showed up.

Kim's mom hung up, then went out to check on Ron. Fortunately, they had been able to stabilize him easily, and he had slipped into a deep sleep. Now that his life was out of danger, Ann's knowledge was needed to tell if there had been any brain damage. She took some scans of his brain, and while it wasn't good, it was encouraging.

His mind was completely jumbled up, but it appeared to be righting itself surprisingly quickly. At this rate, he would probably sleep for the next 24 hours. A few minutes later, the Stoppables showed up, with Monique and Felix in tow. All four of them crowded into the room, and looked like they were going to start bombarding Ann with questions. She motioned to wait, and led them out into the hall.

"I think he's going to be fine, but he'll probably sleep for the next day or so. The shock jumbled his mind up, but his brain's fixing itself. I can't tell if there will be any long lasting effects, but it looks like he's recovering well."

"Oh, thank heavens!" Mrs. Stoppable hugged her husband tightly, then looked in on Ron. At a nod from Ann, Mrs. Stoppable went back in to sit with her son, followed by her husband and son's friends. The Possibles had gone to check on Kim first, and were only now coming upstairs. Ann filled in her husband and sons, but told them they would have to wait until later to see Ron, because the room was too crowded.

Mr. Possible and the twins went back to Kim's room, and Ann stepped back into Ron's room to look at his vitals. They looked good, so she checked his latest brain scan. It looked like it was righting itself very quickly, but there were a number of anomalies. She figured that he might have some small memory faults, but that his mind looked well on it's way to being back to normal.

Ann decided to go back and check on her daughter; she'd want to know about Ron's condition, even if he was just asleep. She made her way to the room, and she was a few steps away when she heard a crash from inside. She quickly went in, and was surprised at what she saw.

It looked like her husband and twins had stepped out, so no one had been in the room. A nurse had gone in to check that Kim was doing all right, and had gotten the surprise of her life. When she had leaned in to check her out, Rufus had run out of Kim's pocket and started growling at the nurse. He wasn't sure exactly what was going on, but he knew that his master wouldn't want anyone to wake Kim up, so he took it upon himself to protect her.

The nurse had dropped a tray with some supplies on it, and surprisingly it hadn't woken Kim up. She was usually a light sleeper, so Ann knew that the events of the last day had taken a lot out of her daughter. Ann motioned that she would take care of Kim, and the nurse left. As soon as she was gone, Ann looked down at the mole rat.

"Rufus? Is that you?" He had started to growl again, but perked up when he recognized her voice. He looked at her, realized that she was okay, and curled back up on Kim's chest.

Ann looked at Kim and decided that she could wait to tell her the news. She turned her eyes to Rufus and whispered to him. "You know how to page me, right?" He nodded his head. "Page me when she wakes up."

As Ann was walking out, she nearly bumped into her husband. "Where have you been?"

Mr Possible looked at her tiredly. "The twins decided that it would be fun to hook rockets up to a wheelchair to make it go faster."

"Rockets! You let them bring rockets into a hospital?"

Mr Possible spoke to her sarcastically. "Yes, Ann, I let them bring in rockets-then I told them where to place them, and how much fuel to add. Did I mention that the rockets explode when they've been used up?"

Mrs Possible gave him a dirty look.

He grimaced, then continued his story. "They found a couple of oxygen tanks and strapped them to the chair when I wasn't looking. It went out the open window at the end of the hall. I sent them out to get it." He changed the subject. "How are Kim and Ron?"

Ann went into clinical mode. "Kim's sleeping, she's just exhausted. Ron appears to have had his brain... 'rebooted' for lack of a better word. His mind is rewiring itself, reconnecting its pathways. At the rate it's going, he should be awake in a day or so."

Mr Possible smiled in relief. "Good, I was afraid it was something really serious."

Ann nodded back. "It's serious enough, but at his age, he should recover easily. You can take the twins up to see Ron, then head home if you want, I'll call if there's any change, but there shouldn't be anything until tomorrow."

Mr Possible agreed, and went out to find the twins. He considered Ron like a son, and felt a certain amount of concern, even now. He wanted to see Ron himself, then figured he'd take his wife's advice.

He found the twins, minus the wheelchair, and after scolding them, went up to check on Ron. They went inside and sat for awhile, talked with Ron's parents and friends, and eventually left a few hours later. Both Felix and Monique decided to leave with them, and Mr Possible took them home.

Ann had other patients to attend to, and since she really couldn't do anything more for Ron, she spent the next few hours working. She finally got a break later, and went in to check up on Kim. She was asleep, Rufus still continuing his vigil. When she walked in, Rufus looked at her and squeaked "No change." No sooner had he said this, then Kim moved. She rolled on her side, and Rufus slid off onto the side of the bed. He chittered at her indignantly, which cause her to finally wake up.

"Rufus?" Kim yawned-then started upright when she realized where she was. "Mom?"

Ann walked over to her bed and spoke up. "I'm here, honey."

Kim got up out of the bed and looked at her mom. "Why didn't you wake me up-how's Ron-can I see him?"

Ann smiled at Kim's inquisitiveness. "He's doing fine, but still unconscious. I've got a break right now, so let's go see him." She reached out and grabbed Rufus, and he scurried up to her shoulder. She headed out of the room, and Kim followed her. A few minutes later, they arrived at Ron's door and went in.

As soon as Kim went in, Mrs Stoppable stood up and grabbed her hands. "Your mom told us what happened, are you alright?"

Kim was a put a little off balance, but quickly recovered. "I'm fine, but how's Ron doing?"

Mr Stoppable looked at her. "There's no change yet, but your mom says there won't be for the next day or so."

Mrs Stoppable grabbed Kim's attention again. "We'll stay here tonight, and call you if anything changes. That way you'll be wide awake tomorrow when he wakes up."

Kim was planning on staying with Ron, but they made a good point. She would want to see Ron first thing, so she would need to be awake to do that. She nodded at them. "Alright, I'll go. But I want you to call me if he wakes up before then."

Mrs Stoppable gave a smile. "We'll let you know."

Kim gave Rufus a questioning glance, and Rufus stared back. He was divided, wanting to stay with Ron, but wondering if he should go with Kim. She made a gesture with her hand, and Rufus hopped down to Ron's bed, and curled up on his chest.

"Now come on, Kimmie, off to home with you." Ann grabbed her daughter and led her out of the room. She knew that Kim wouldn't leave until she was forced.

Kim sighed and left. She made her way home, taking the time to think through everything that had happened. She reached her house rather quickly, and made her way up to her room. She pulled the Kimmunicator out and plugged it in to charge, then moved over to her closet. She got ready to change, then remembered what she was wearing-Zorpox's dark outfit. She changed out of it and put on her pajamas, then looked at the clothes. So much trouble, represented by these clothes. She went over to her trash can and held the clothes above it. She was ready to throw it away, but something stopped her. She growled, then threw it in the back of her closed. She'd deal with it later.

Kim turned around, then hopped in bed. It was late, but Kim wasn't able to get to sleep. She still felt guilty about hurting Ron, even if he _did_ leave her no other choice. She didn't get much sleep that night, and when the next morning rolled around, she was exhausted. She rolled out of bed and got dressed, and just as she was finishing, she got a call from Monique saying that she was already at the hospital, and that nothing had changed. She told Kim to take her time getting up there.

The red head hung up, and couldn't help but smile. Monique knew her almost as well as Ron did, knew that she would rush to get up there. She decided to take a little time and make herself more presentable, and nearly two hours later she left the house, ready for anything.

She made her way to the hospital, and spotted Monique waiting inside the doors. "Hey, Kim. They say it'll be another couple of hours, and I was wondering if you'd had breakfast."

Kim looked at her sheepishly. "Ummmm..."

"That's what I thought. Girl, you're not going to do him any good starving yourself to death. Let's get you some food." Monique turned her around and led her out the door.

Kim looked around, confused. "Um, Monique, the cafeteria is inside."

Monique just looked at her. "Have you eaten the food here? I wouldn't feed it to Rufus-and he'll eat anything. Nuh uh, we need to get you some real food. How does Bueno Nacho sound?"

"Since you insist." As the girls made their way to Bueno Nacho, Ann Possible made her way in to Ron's room to check on him.

After saying hello to everyone there, she walked over to the monitors and looked at their readings. Some of the readings were fluctuating and ss she analyzed them, she frowned.

Instantly, Mrs Stoppable was concerned. "Is everything all right?"

Ann gave her a smile. "Actually, he's waking up early."

Mrs. Possible turned and looked at Ron's face, and he stirred. He slowly blinked his eyes open and looked around. "Whe-where am I?"

Ann looked at Ron and smiled. "You're at the Middleton Hospital, Ronald. You received a nasty shock, but you're recovering well. You should be out of here in a couple of days, after we make sure you're fit as a chimp."

Ron groaned at that comment, then turned his head to the side. He spotted his parents and Felix, and then looked down to see Rufus on his chest. He reached out and nudged him awake; Rufus blinked sleepily, then hopped forward and gave him a big hug. Ron sat up, then looked over at Felix.

"How long have I been out?"

Felix gave a small shrug. "Since yesterday. What do you remember?"

The blond closed his eyes, and tried to think, but couldn't remember. "The last thing I remember is riding in a plane and getting a half bag of peanuts. Is it too much to ask for a full bag if that's all I'm gonna get on the flight?"

Ron's parents shared a look. It sounded like he was back to normal. They joined in the discussion and talked about all sorts of things, from his plane ride to school. They left out any mention of the last few weeks, decided that it would be best for Ron to remember on his own, if he ever did.

Ann slipped out of the room while they were talking and made her way to her office. She picked up her phone and tried to contact Kim on the Kimmunicator, but couldn't get an answer. Then she remembered that Monique was with her, and called her cellphone.

Kim and Monique had gone into Bueno Nacho and ordered, then sat down to eat. They were midway through their meal when Monique's cellphone had gone off. She quickly pulled it out and answered. As soon as Kim's mother told her Ron was awake, Monique said they were on their way and hung up. The teen turned to Kim.

"He woke up early, Kim-he's awake right now." She had barely finished and Kim was already out the door. Monique looked around the room, then walked over to Ned. "Do you think I can get the rest of this to go?"

Kim was halfway to the Hospital when she realized that Monique wasn't with her. She paused and looked around, wondering if she should wait. She decided to continue on, and made it to the hospital in record time. She walked inside, and spotted Monique waiting for her.

"Ho-how did you get here before I did?"

Monique smiled at her confusion. "Ned dropped me off-he just finished a late shift at Bueno Nacho. Come on, let's go up and see Ron."

They both made their way to his room, and Kim went in before Monique could. Ron looked up when she walked in, and seemed surprised when she rushed over to his bed. Kim grabbed his arm and starting talking nonstop. "Ron, I'm so glad you're awake and I'm so sorry you got hurt but now you're better and I hope nothing like this ever happens again don't scare me like that...Ron, are you okay?" Ron looked at her, confused.

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine, but I have to ask...who are you?"

X X X X

_At that very moment, twenty four hours after the lair exploded, a countdown started. In a large room, buried hundreds of feet underground, a small digital counter glowed. The countdown started at one hundred days and began its inexorable drive to Twilight._

* * *

_**A/N** Well, hopefully that wasn't too surpising of an end. Fortunately, I'll continue this with an epilogue to sum everything else up, in a seperate story, covering what happens here, and how Drakken set up his plot in So The Drama._

_First, a big apreciative thanks out to Eddy13, who has beta checked this story, and my others, and helps to check things when I post them, too, catching more than one mistake. This story would be much less readable with out him._

_Also, thanks to everyone who's taken the time to read and review-I hit my goal with this one, 100+ reviews-although it's not about the reviews, but about readers, and the people who enjoy that story. Hopefully I kept people interested, and for those wondering, yes, I definitely intend to continue this story with a sequel. Zorpox's plans are far from over._


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